Esoteric
by thatotherme
Summary: Kougami hasn't been feeling well lately and Akane just wants to make him better...if only everything else would stop getting in the way. Some semblance of a story, but mostly fluff and belly rubs. Mostly just Akane/Kougami, probably a little bit of twisted Makishima/Kougami later on. (Belly kink / stuffing / stomach aches / belly torture / etc)
1. Chapter 1

Working at MWPSB headquarters was still strange to her sometimes. Akane thought she would have shaken the feeling by now, but it persisted regardless, and really, there was only one place in the entire building that didn't make her feel that way.

She had been visiting him for a while now, usually after the conclusion of a mission or in the evenings. For whatever reason, she felt more at home on his couch than she did in her own apartment...somehow, it had become the place that she defaulted to when there was something on her mind or just unwind from the day. Oftentimes, it was just to talk a little, about missions, about books, about anything, really...though granted, she usually did more of the talking than he did. And then, when he got tired, he'd let her lay her head on his chest or stomach to read while he sprawled out over the sofa to smoke and nap.

The lights appeared to be off at first, but door was open, the scent of tobacco prominent in the air.

"Kougami?"

The room wasn't completely dark, she realized as she stood in the doorway. She could just make out the scattered contents of an unkempt desk against the far wall, illuminating the papers, documents, ash trays, and the coffee rings staining the surface underneath.

Kougami himself had his back to her, his arm wrapped idly around his waist as he contemplated the wall behind his cluttered desk. The smoky haze in the room told Akane that he'd already been through a few cigarettes, which meant there was something troubling him. Not that it was uncommon to find him pouring over the bulletin board, but usually when it was time for her to come and visit him, he'd settled down enough to not be obsessing over it.

_Grrwwourrrggrrrlpp_.

The sound yanked Akane from her thoughts, startling her, and at first she didn't know where it had come from...a moment later, however, Kougami leaned forward slightly, still holding his stomach with one arm. He expelled a sharp breath, and then straightened again a few moments later, sighing heavily and writing another note on his wall beside one of the newest photos he'd pinned there.

Akane opened her mouth uncertainly, but she heard his stomach again before she could say anything...biting her lip, she moved forward, setting a hand gently against his broad back as he hunched forward.

"Kougami..."

He whirled around with fire in his eyes, but Akane was undeterred by his stormy expression, more concerned by how pale his face was as he glared down at her. A moment later, recognition dawned on his features, another sigh escaping him as his expression cleared slightly.

"...Inspector," he returned, though the title had become more of a nickname at this point, slipping his hands into his pockets as he leaned against the side of his desk. "What brings you here?"

Akane hesitated, her eyes dropping for just a moment to his middle, where his shirt was still crumpled from where he'd been gripping it.

"I just wanted to read a little," she admitted. "I didn't realize you were still working."

He took a heavy drag of his cigarette and exhaled.

"Don't worry about it. You left your book on the coffee table, by the way."

"Thanks," Akane returned. "I'm gonna come back when you're wrapped up here...I don't want to interrupt."

He rubbed the back of his neck and offered a brief nod, finishing off his cigarette and then pressing it into the ash tray on his desk.

"You sure?"

Akane nodded, but then hesitated again nonetheless.

"Kougami...are you sick?"

His eyes narrowed slightly, and he looked down at her with a stern expression...she wondered if she'd made him angry. "I'm fine. What makes you say that?"

"Well..." Akane folded her arms and looked off to one side. "You're just a little pale, is all. And you were practically doubled over just now..."

She trailed off, silence falling between them as they stood facing each other...a quiet growl issued from Kougami's stomach, and Akane wondered if she should also point out that he was still slumped against his desk.

"Sit down?" she tried.

"I told you, I'm fine."

Akane moved to his side as he leaned forward even as he spoke...his stomach gave him away by letting out another beastly noise. He sighed in resignation and pushed himself toward the couch, slumping onto it and holding his gut. Akane sat down slowly on the coffee table in front of him, setting her hands on his knees as he groaned.

"Shh." She rubbed her thumb over his knee a little. "Your stomach's not feeling so well, huh?"

Kougami expelled a long breath in discontent and let his head drop back against the couch. "Not so much..."

He closed his eyes and ran his hands down his face, his shirt falling open again at the bottom just above his navel. Akane smiled and reached out toward him, then paused as she saw him visibly tense, always on edge.

Gently, she touched his stomach, keenly aware that he was statue-like as she did so, his eyes watching her unflinchingly. The material of his shirt was thin as she moved one hand up and down the surface of it, hesitating for just a moment as she did so. Her fingertips grasped the edge of his shirt right beside it briefly, lingering, but then released the material, touching his stomach again near the dip in his bellybutton.

She heard Kougami's breath hitch sharply, his eyes opening and the muscles in his sotmach twitching for a moment, but she stroked the length of it again, very lightly, hardly daring to touch him at all.

"...I'm sorry," she murmured absently, her gaze unfaltering on his middle. "As I was saying...um..."

She moved her hand slightly, daring to stroke his navel just once...immediately, she heard his breath hitch again, a large hand covering the area protectively a moment later, but it did little to deter her. Gently, she wrapped her hand around one of his fingers and pulled his hand away, a slight tremor in the other as she rubbed his stomach again, gently, then repetitively, unmindful of the slow rise and fall as he breathed. He made no further attempts to retaliate, and so she released his hand, placing her other palm flat against his belly to keep him from fidgeting as she continued to run her hand up and down the length of his stomach.

"Akane..."

The mention of her name was enough for her to realize how close they were, her breath playing across the vulnerable area of his midsection. He let her lean forward, and she left a chaste kiss against his diaphragm...then another, and another, smiling slightly against his skin as she heard a noise escape him.

"I'm sorry you're sick," she murmured.

Kougami didn't respond, remaining quietly where he sat with his arms across the back of the old sofa and staying still for her. Akane held both sides of his stomach gently beneath his shirt to soothe him, hearing a quiet groan escape him every so often but continuing regardless. Then, without warning, another sound suddenly forced its way from his belly..with her hands against him, Akane realized how badly his entire middle spasmed each time the noise escaped him.

"Shit..." He let his head drop back and closed his eyes again, resting his hand over them.

"Kougami, are you okay?"

"My stomach's killing me..."

Akane reached out from the coffee table to hold his stomach with both hands, stroking the broad surface softly with her thumb until the spasm subsided. She'd never seen him sick, really...injured, yes, but not sick. She rubbed his diaphragm a little as another stomach rumble wracked his body, tracing her fingertips down the side. Her fingernails dug into him a little as she did so, wishing she could make it stop.

He didn't open his eyes, however, nor did he try to stop her...abruptly, however both their pagers went off, and Akane's heart sank as she checked hers. "No...not now..."

"Looks like Gino needs us." Grimacing, Kougami slowly began to sit up, leaning into Akane's hands as she placed them hastily on his shoulders to push him back.

"You can't," she said immediately. "Just stay here, I'll cover for you."

"Nope." He leaned forward over his midsection, placing his hands on his knees as though to push himself up. "You know the drill for Enforcers."

"But..." Akane snatched up one of his large hands before he could protest and pressed it to his belly, flushing slightly at the way it sank in a little as she did so. A moment later, they both felt the area seize up again.

"Mnh."

"You're in no condition to be going anywhere," Akane continued as he closed his eyes in discomfort. "Besides, your, um...your belly's been really loud lately. It's even worse now...they'll know."

"Nhhh...loud, huh? Says who?" Kougami murmured absently, rubbing his stomach.

"I've...I've just...noticed. Nothing as bad as tonight, though."

Hesitantly, she reached out as she recalled such incidents, placing her hand next to Kougami's and dropping her gaze. He watched her for a few moments, then covered her hand with his own and shifting it over a little to the side of his stomach. Almost immediately, she felt a faint tremor run through the area, reminiscent of the soft gurgles and groans she had often heard issuing from his midsection as of late. Her face colored slightly.

"Y...yeah. Like that." She peered up at him. "...So then...you've had an upset tummy for a while, huh?"

"It's not so bad. Just a little finicky lately."

Their pagers went off again, and Kougami's expression strained for a moment as he placed his hands on his knees, pushing himself to his feet and wavering slightly.

"Kougami!"

"I told you, I'll be okay," he returned, slipping his hands into his pockets as Akane stood up to face him as well, letting her grip the front of his crumpled shirt over his stomach for a moment. "Let's just get through Gino's speech, okay?"

Akane looked troubled, but gave an unwilling nod, avoiding his gaze and keeping her eyes on his torso instead.

"...Okay," she relented finally, running her hand briefly down the front of his shirt, moving to fasten it at the bottom. "I guess you're right."

He set a hand briefly on her shoulder before finally pulling away, leading the way out into the rest of the PSB headquarters and toward the briefing room.

Ginoza looked up in mild annoyance as both his fellow Inspector and Kougami entered the briefing room together...they were only a minute or so late, but by Ginoza's standards, late was late, and he did not approve.

"Now that we can finally get started," he sniped as Kougami sank down into a seat beside Masaoka and Akane alongside him. "We believe we've narrowed down Makishima's location this time, but as always, he's a step ahead. A covert operation is likely impossible, as he's surrounded himself with protection from the guerilla group he's been providing that new technology to..."

He continued his briefing, much to the discontent of most of the people in the room, reviewing each aspect of the mission they were expected to embark upon the next day. It wasn't an overly complicated one, but they did need to be thorough, and as always, Ginoza was not one to leave any stones unturned.

_Grrgrgrrgrghh...gllrrrrrrrrrrrgh..._

Masaoka glanced over, then leaned slowly toward Kougami, talking from behind his hand so Ginoza wouldn't hear him.

"Hey...Ko!" He hissed at the younger Enforcer. "Was that your stomach?"

"No."

Akane glanced up at Kougami worriedly, but he was staring stubbornly at Ginoza, his hands set firmly on the armrests of his chair and his expression stoic. As Masaoka turned away again, she reached over carefully under the table as though to straighten the bottom of Kougami's tie, but her knuckles grazed his stomach briefly as she did so in way of asking him how he was doing.

"A new training program has been formalized, so I expect it to be utilized by each agent before the beginning of our next mission..." Ginoza continued, going over the mission some more as he handed out files for them all to look at.

Kougami kept his stomach ache to himself throughout the rest of the meeting, though Akane could tell by the way he sat a little too rigidly in his chair without moving that he was trying very hard not to show any emotion. When at last they were dismissed, a collective sigh of relief went around the room and everyone began to get to their feet.

"Akane, Kougami." Ginoza's stern gaze was upon them as he approached and the others began to file out of the room. "Mission begins first thing tomorrow, so you'll need to run through the training program today. Masaoka and Kagari have already completed it, so they'll be your sparring partners."

Akane opened her mouth uncertainly, partially out of skepticism for her own ability to complete a rigorous training program and partially out of concern for Kougami, whom she didn't think needed to be doing much in the way of physical activity at the moment.

"Sir-,"

"No excuses," Ginoza interrupted. "Off you go. Don't waste company time."


	2. Chapter 2

Standing off to the side while Kagari and Masaoka trained, Akane fervently took notes on everything they were doing so that she might be more prepared later when it was her turn...she didn't feel she was up to par with the others, physically, and for someone who was used to receiving such high marks in all other areas, it bothered her.

She looked up from notepad as she heard Kougami enter the training arena...he'd changed into a form-fitting black shirt and grey sweats and looked to be in just as bad a mood as ever.

__That shirt...is he a little softer around the middle than I remember?__

Before, the outline of his abdominals through the material of his clothing was always fairly obvious, but it had been a while since she'd seen him in the outfit, and despite the fact that he was still fairly in shape, she thought he looked...softer there.

He glanced briefly at Akane, shaking his head in mild amusement as he saw her – unsurprisingly – with notepad in hand, then moved away toward Masaoka and Kagari.

"Let's get this over with already."

Kagari looked around at him and grinned, waving. "Hey Ko! You ready to get started?"

Kougami brought his hands up to fight, glaring at the younger man, who paled a little under his withering stare. He didn't usually have much luck when it came to sparring with Kougami, losing to the other Enforcer more often than not, but at least it was two on one this time around.

"Go!"

Kougami darted out of the way as Kagari lunged at him, striking his elbow into the redhead's back and then switching his focus to Masaoks just as the older man swung a fist around at him, blocking the blow and then jumping over Kagari's leg as he tried to sweep it across to trip him up. Masaoka darted around to come at his target from the other side, but Kougami grabbed Kagari by the front of his shirt and yanked him up to use as a human shield, giving him a shove toward Masaoka and sending them both tumbling backwards for a moment.

Kagari huffed, always one to get heated during training, and ran at Kougami again, his skinny arms barely able to hold up against Kougami's far stronger ones as the other Enforcer struck out at him. As they fought, Masaoka ran around to tackle Kougami from the side, but the man managed to break free from Kagari in time to dart out the way and attack instead.

Masaoka smirked, moving toward Kougami again and grabbing his arm, managing to wrench it around to his back long enough for Kagari to get back on his feet...seeing an opportunity, the younger Enforcer grinned triumphantly and swung his fist around into Kougami's stomach.

"__OOF!__"

Barely managing to shove Masaoka off him, Kougami doubled over with his hands pressed to his stomach, gritting his teeth for a moment. "Ngh..."

Kagari just looked shocked that he'd managed to get a good hit in against Kougami, a giddy grin passing over his features with newfound confidence as he hurried toward his coworker again.

Still leaning forward, Kougami spotted Kagari heading for him from the corner of his eye and brought one hand off his stomach to block the hit, though he took a couple of steps backwards in the process as he tried to keep his balance from the impact of the strike. He blocked a few more of Kagari's attacks one-handed, keeping the other on his gut, but eventually he had to remove it to block Masaoka as the older man went for him at the same time. As soon as he did, Kagari took advantage of it and went for the same target, attacking Kougami's belly before the other man could retaliate.

"NGH!"

"Kagari!" Akane blurted out scoldingly before she could stop herself, but the redhead only grinned at her.

"Don't sweat it, Inspector, we're just training," he laughed, oblivious as Kougami wrapped his arms around his stomach behind him.

"But-,"

"Incoming!" Masaoka warned, and Kougami managed to duck out of the way right before the older man could attack him.

Kagari returned to the fray as well, though a swift kick from Kougami sent him flying not long after. Masaoka and Kougami continued to spar while the younger Enforcer lay on his back and groaned, taking a few moments to recover. But, he reasoned, at least he'd come up with a strategy that meant he didn't get his ass completely handed to him like he usually did, and he intended to stick with it.

Masaoka managed to grapple Kougami into a hold again even though the man refused to go down, and Kagari saw his chance, scrambling to his feet again. On his first approach, Kougami kicked him back again before he could reach him, but he managed to block the second strike long enough to get in close, punching Kougami in the stomach hard while Masaoka held him at bay. Kougami gritted his teeth, tilting his head back and taking it as best he could...he couldn't even double over with the way Masaoka was pinning him, couldn't do much of anything until Kagari got cocky and drew back to deliver a more powerful blow. It took everything in Kougami to block the attack with his leg, then throw Masaoka over his shoulder onto the training mat and stumble backwards.

__My gut...I can't take another hit like that...__

Hunched over, he held one hand to his aching belly and fixed a hazy glare on the other two Enforcers as they both ran at him...he managed to block a few more blows from both of them, but he couldn't keep it up for long. Kagari lunged, swinging his fist up deep into the middle of Kougami's soft belly, and the man dropped like a ton of bricks.

"Get 'im!"

Charging at the downed Enforcer, Kagari let his confidence get the best of him, and right before he reached Kougami, his opponent's foot came out to kick him square in the chest with enough force to send him flying across the mats.

"Time," Masaoka declared as the two of them lay on the floor.

Sprawled on his back, Kougami glared up at him wearily in response, his face pale as he tried not to pant too much. Still reveling in what was probably his first win ever against the man, Kagari chuckled and got unsteadily to his feet, walking over and patting Kougami's unguarded stomach.

"Can't take it in the belly?" he teased before Kougami knocked his hand away. "Hey..."

"That's enough, Kagari..." Akane's tone was somewhat scolding behind the redhead as she approached.

"Okay, okay..." Still grinning, Kagari looked back down at Kougami. "Ready for Round 2?"

Masaoka, however, seemed to realize Kougami wasn't going to be getting up any time soon. "Hell, what's the rush? Better to take a break first," he surmised, rolling his shoulders.

Kagari looked surprised, but unwilling to pass up on an opportunity to slack off. "Hey, I second that! Kougami, let's-,"

"Beat it," Kougami muttered, not getting up off the floor.

Kagari chuckled again. "Sore loser. See ya in a few, Ko...Inspector Tsunemori..."

Akane knelt beside Kougami as the other two made their way out of the gym, settling her hand on his forehead, but as soon as the others were gone, Kougami immediately curled into a ball on his side, wrapping his arms tightly around his stomach and clenching his teeth.

"You have to call out sick," Akane pleaded, leaning forward onto her hands and knees beside him. "Please, Kougami...you shouldn't be working. You shouldn't even be out of your room."

"I'm not...calling out for...a stomach ache..."

"You can barely move..."

Kougami cracked one eye open to look up at her. "Kagari hits harder than you think."

"He hit you over and over in your sick belly because it was the only way he could win, you should have told him you weren't feeling well," Akane retaliated, petting his hair. "Let me see."

"Akane," Kougami growled, sounding very much like the hunting dog Ginoza often said he was as she tried to move him onto his back again.

Even so, he didn't fight back beyond that, slowly rolling over so she could fold his shirt back up to his ribs and look at his stomach. Suppressing a groan as she did so, he looked up at her wearily as her face tinted red for a moment.

"What's wrong?"

Akane set a hand over his abdomen. "It's just..."

They both looked up as the door to the gym beside the training center flew open...Shion spotted the two of them and gave an idle wave as she slung a towel around her shoulders, heading to the water cooler to get a drink after her own training session with Yayoi in the other room.

"Hey there, kiddos...did I come in at a bad time?" she mused, mostly to get a rise out of Akane.

It worked, and the Inspector's face turned bright red, hastily smoothing down her clothes and adjusting her hair unnecessarily.

"It's...um...it's not...like that at all...I just...Kougami's hurt, and-,"

"Akane!"

"Oh yeah? What's the damage, big guy?" Shion mused, ignoring Kougami's protest as she swaggered over to the pair of them. She arched an eyebrow.

"What?" Kougami growled.

Shion chuckled. "Did you put on a little weight, Ko?" she asked, grinning.

The statement was a bit of an exaggeration, but Akane had noticed as well a few moments ago...Kougami's stomach definitely wasn't as defined as it used to be, the surface mostly flat but softer than she remembered...not quite chubby, but not the rock-hard abdomen he once had.

Kougami's face heated slightly then as well, and he glared up at the smirking blonde from where he lay. "...I've just been a little off my game lately," he growled, sucking in his gut on instinct. "I haven't gained any weight."

"If you say so," Shion returned, getting to one knee on Kougami's other side to look him over. "So what's the matter, huh? You're not lookin' so hot."

"He was training with Masaoka and Kagari," Akane volunteered, to save Shion the effort of trying to extract the information from Kougami when he was in such a foul mood. "His tummy's been hurting him anyway, he just won't admit it, and he took a lot of hits."

Without realizing it, she moved her hand back to Kougami's stomach as she spoke, her thumb stroking the surface gently...Shion smirked knowingly but didn't say anything, knowing she would embarrass the Inspector again by pointing out her obvious concern for him.

"Bring him up to my lab and I'll give him a once-over," Shion said briskly, patting Kougami's middle a couple of times. "Make sure they didn't cause any permanent damage."

"It's just my stomach," Kougami growled. "I'll be fine..."

"Says the guy layin' on the floor," Shion shot back, getting to her feet and offering Akane a wave. "I'll be around."

Akane looked at Kougami sternly as the blonde moved away toward the exit. "Your belly's already turning red from where you got hit, you're probably going to bruise," she said. "Just let her make sure they didn't hurt anything too badly inside you since you already weren't feeling well before you started fighting, okay?"

Kougami fixed her with a long-suffering glare, but sighed nonetheless. "You're not giving me a choice?"

Akane smiled a little. "Not really. Come on, let's go."

**((Listen to Kougami's sick stomach while reading this section: watch?v=-IL3ky-Kcj8))**

Kougami immediately regretted having agreed to let Shion take a look at him as soon as Akane got paged.

"I'm sorry," she said to him as he fixed her with an exasperated look from the table he was lying on. "Ginoza wants to review a few more details from our last case with me."

"Don't worry," Shion mused, circling one finger slowly over Kougami's bare stomach and dipping a well-manicured nail briefly into his bellybutton. "I'll have him back to you all in one piece...more or less."

"Akane," Kougami growled, almost pleadingly, but the Inspector was already turning red as Shion touched his stomach, busying herself with her Holo device.

"I-I'm sorry...I have to go."

Shion chuckled a little as Akane hurriedly excused herself from the room, looking flustered.

"Too much for her to handle, I guess," she mused. "She thinks you have beautiful eyes, you know."

"What?" Kougami muttered, glaring at the smirking blonde.

"It's true. I heard her say it."

Feeling exposed, Kougami wrapped an arm around his midsection, wondering what he'd done to Akane to deserve having her abandon him in a lab with a sadist. "Stop messing with me..."

Shion grinned and pulled his arm away again. "I can't examine you if you keep doing that."

Kougami scowled, then looked over sharply as Shion set his arm against the table he was on and clamped the thick metal restraint there around his wrist.

"Hey," he growled. "What the hell's that for?"

"To keep you still, of course," Shion responded, coaxing his remaining arm down so she could bind his the wrist on his other side as well.

"Is that really necessary?" he demanded, glaring at her and looking even more annoyed when she grinned playfully at him in return.

"You're in my lab. This is how I do things in my lab," she returned.

Kougami tugged on the metal cuffs a little. "Knock it off, You're just doing this to screw with my head..."

Shion smiled. "Maybe a little," she said, moving up to the table and patting his bare stomach, which rumbled audibly in response and caused Kougami to twist slightly in discomfort. Shion raised an eyebrow. "My, my...what a sick tummy we have here..."

Kougami gritted his teeth as she set her hands on his belly to examine him, pressing into the surface to check for any damage. He felt so weak...over the past month, his stomach had been starved through sleepless nights of research into Makishima's whereabouts, stuffed with poorly cooked food at Kagari's birthday celebration, ravaged by a belly bug he'd caught (probably from the poorly cooked food), hurt on violent missions with uncooperative criminals, and now beaten to hell in the training center...the only respite had been the few, brief moments of comfort Akane had provided him with when she'd found out, and now she was gone again...

Shion caught Kougami's eyes flit toward the door and shook her head. "You heard her, she's not coming back for a while...she knows she left you at my mercy and she knew what I was gonna do to you. Why do you think she's always so embarrassed around me? Nobody's coming to get you out of this, hon."

"Nhgh..."

Shion glanced down at him. "Cold hands, I know," she said as her icy fingers felt his belly. "What the hell have you been doing to yourself?"

Kougami sucked in his gut in attempt to avoid her invasive touches, trying unsuccessfully to pull one of his wrists free so he could shield his stomach, but doing so only made Shion press more deeply into his soft belly.

"I still think you've gained a little weight. Too sick to do any crunches lately, huh?"

"Ngh..."

Shion smirked as he twisted again from the pressure she was putting on his stomach, immediately trying to tense the muscles in his stomach to make it less palpable when she teased him...but his abdominals were shot to hell, so made little to no difference.

"Stop squirming, you'll only make me take longer."

Kougami gritted his teeth, but stilled nonetheless, his hands curling into fists to combat the discomfort she was causing him. Satisfied, Shion resumed her duties, pressing delicately into his diaphragm, his sides just below his ribs...smirking as she reached his lower belly because she knew it would embarrass him.

"Is this just the swelling from the bruises, or is there a little bit of chub here?" she mused, long, manicured nails tickling the bottom of his stomach lightly.

"There's not," Kougami growled, trying to suck his stomach in again. "Hey, knock it off!"

Annoyed, he glared up at her as she started to draw slow, seductive patterns across his lower belly just above his waistline with her nails...he knew she was doing it just to get a reaction out of him, but he couldn't help the goosebumps that such a light touch left behind, shivering slightly.

Shion flashed him a wink, trailing her fingernails slowly down from his stomach and around to his side, pinching teasingly at it to try and find enough there to form a love handle.

"I said knock it off!" Kougami snarled, pulling at the metal bar around one of his wrists again.

"Oh, settle down," Shion dismissed, squeezing his side one more time before moving her hands back to finish checking his stomach. "Does this hurt?"

She pushed her fingertips slowly, deeply into the area just to the right of his diaphragm with both hands, moving her fingers in a slow circle.

"Nrgh...yeah. It does."

"What about here?" She moved down and over to press into the middle of his belly.

"-Ah!" Kougami's lip curled a little, his eyes closing. "Yeah."

Shion patted his tummy a couple of times and then sunk her fingers into his stomach again, trailing her fingertips lightly over the surface each time she moved to a new area. She smirked vaguely as Kougami writhed beneath her unrelenting hands pushing into his belly, eliciting another sick-sounding gurgle from it followed by a strained noise from the Enforcer.

"Hmm..." She pressed down into the middle of his belly again, hearing another rumble as her fingers sank in...moving her hand down, she did it again with the same result.

"Where does it hurt the most?"

"Wherever the...hell you press into me like that," Kougami growled, holding back a grunt of discomfort and clenching his teeth. "Sh-shit..."

__Grrllpp. Grrgrgrgh. Grlrrlrorp.__

"All right, you did that already," he snarled as Shion continued examining into various parts of his stomach and making it gurgle.

"Hey, don't be mad at me," she lectured, patting his stomach again. "The pain goes pretty deep inside, huh?"

Kougami let his head drop back again and closed his eyes for a moment, tensing slightly as Shion trailed a hand down his abdomen...she began to press her fingertips into the middle of his gut again, but she didn't relent when he began to squirm.

"How much does this hurt?" she murmured, her fingers sinking deep, deep into his belly...Kougami began to stir, squirming in discomfort, but he couldn't move his torso at all with Shion's hands pinning him there.

"N...o...stop..."

His belly was soft and palpable, allowing Shion to press into him more and more, her eyes watching him intently.

"O-oh...ahh...ahhh!"

Without letting go, Shion began to move up onto the table as well, straddling his waist to keep him from drawing his knees up, her fingers pressed into his belly past her knuckles when, finally, she met too much resistance, halfway to his spine.

"...G...get...off...me..." Kougami forced out vaguely. "...M...y...stomach...hurt...s...too...mu...ch..."

A gasp escaped him as she finally stopped pushing on his abdomen, which heaved in and out as he panted, but it was only for a moment before she ran her hands down the sides of his stomach, trailing her fingernails lightly along his skin as she did so.

"Heh...objectively, I can almost understand what cute little Inspector Tsunemori sees in you," she mused as her hands trailed down his torso. "What a body, hm?"

Kougami glared up at her hazily, his stomach straining. "...Get...off me..."

"Psh...if you're gonna be like that, I guess I don't __have __to examine you," Shion teased. "Maybe I should just play with you a little instead..."

"What?" Kougami jerked a little as she lay her hand on his stomach again, running her forefinger briefly down the dip in his navel. "Nrgh..."

"Your face is turning red," Shion observed in sly amusement. "Are you a little sensitive there?"

"Enough...already," Kougami retaliated, trying unsuccessfully to squirm away from her touch as she rubbed slyly at his bellybutton. "When are you gonna let me...out of these things?"

Shion smirked, purposefully rough with him as she sought to elicit a reaction, coaxing a sharp groan at last as a manicured nail pierced deep into his bellybutton.

"That's...enough...unh..."

"My lab," Shion reminded him, her lips inches from his ear as she suddenly grabbed his middle, fingertips digging deep into his sick tummy. "I say when it's enough."

"UNGH!"

Shion held his burning gaze as she groped at the vulnerable area, her grip frigid and unforgiving against his soft belly before focusing on his navel again. Kougami clenched his teeth as his gurgling bellybutton was attacked over and over, taking it without complaint through sheer stubbornness and the hope that if he didn't give her any satisfaction in his responses, it might be over soon. He watched grimly as Shion leaned down to plant insincere kisses over same spot again and again, leaving lip stains of deep red lipstick against his bellybutton, and then over the rest of his broad torso as she massaged his navel with a freezing fingertip.

"No...stop..."

Shion grinned down at the pale, sick Enforcer as she took her boredom out on his upset stomach, his movements growing weaker even as he continued trying to pull one of his wrists free. He still had enough in him to glare daggers at her, however, and she had to appreciate his spirit.

Shaking her head, she hurt his bellybutton a while longer before she finally let up to admire her handiwork. Everything around his navel was red and slightly bruised from the treatment by the time she was done with him...Kougami twisted as though trying to curl onto his side and move his hands over the area, though of course, he could do neither.

"Just...let me out of these things...my gut can't take any more of this..."

Akane might have known Shion would tease him, but Kougami doubted she had any idea that some of the marks he was going to end up with came from anything other than his spar with Kagari. The urge to wrap up into a ball again and relieve some of the discomfort in his belly was so strong that he very nearly managed to pull a hand free from Shion's confines, a thin sheen of sweat more evident on his forehead now than when he'd first come in.

"You're so impatient. I'm almost done." She smirked down at him, finally relenting to put on her stethoscope. "I don't feel anything dangerous, at least, so let me just listen for a while...shut up for a minute, will ya?"

Kougami gritted his teeth and tried not to flinch as she pressed the device to his slightly swollen belly...it was ice-cold and unforgiving, the pressure beckoning another groan from deep in his gut as it spasmed against the metal device. He was too sick by then to try to move away from it, however, and his wrists grew slack in their confines as Shion continued listening and did as she pleased to his bare stomach. His whole gut ached, cold and sore, churning uncontrollably from where Kagari had punched him and throbbing from how he was being forced to lay out flat on the table, but that didn't stop Shion from digging her fingers into him, grabbing at the fleshier parts of his stomach to tease him, forcing the cold, hard stethoscope up against his soft belly to hear what was going on inside him...every so often, Kougami failed to hold back an agonized sound from between his clenched teeth, sweat clinging to his forehead as he twisted within his bindings. In his head, he heard Kagari's voice taunting him again.

__Can't take it in the belly?__

"Nrgh..."

Eventually, Shion got done examining him, giving his stomach a few firm pats as a reward that he was too exhausted to react to.

"There...that could've been worse, right?" she pointed out, winking at him and making sure he could see her hand move slowly back down toward his navel.

__No...not again...__

He arched his back, his stomach rolling in vain attempt to avoid her crimson nail as she trailed it gently from the top of his bellybutton to the bottom before she started to hurt him again, rubbing the painful red area more and more roughly until he couldn't take it anymore and let out a yell at long last.

Shion smiled, then reaching to release the metal bindings around his wrists. They were slightly bruised from how he'd been pulling against his confines, about as red as his bellybutton, which he slowly covered with his hands as he curled onto his side, his body shivering slightly from the cold steel he was lying on. "Nngh..."

"You're all done, hon," Shion said, grinning as he moved to shakily rub the residual lipstick off his torso. "Just lay there for a few minutes to recover, hmm?"

Kougami shot her a tired glare from where he was doubled over on the table, both hands still clamped over his bellybutton in vain attempt to stop it from hurting so much. He didn't have it in him to get up right away, his stomach churning too much, but he rolled away from Shion to give her his back while he clutched his middle, wrapped in a ball on the cold table.

Akane found the first opportunity she could to excuse herself, having spent most of her time away concerned about Kougami's condition...she wasn't sure whether she should be relieved or not when she returned to the lab to find him still there, though he didn't so much as stir as she slipped through the door.

Shion glanced up, lighting a cigarette in greeting and setting her feet up on the console next to her.

"Welcome back," she greeted.

"Thanks..." Akane glanced briefly over at Kougami, then back at Shion. "So is everything...okay?"

Shion took a drag of her cigarette.

"I don't know what he's been doing to himself lately, but he's in bad shape," she said. "The tummy troubles come as no surprise, considering. He needs to start taking better care of himself."

Akane looked fretful, but the blonde shook her head. "There's nothing life-threatening...he'll start feeling better if he just rests properly for a few days."

Nodding her gratitude, Akane smiled a little as she approached the table, coming to a stop at Kougami's side as Shion excused herself from the lab.

"Kougami...are you okay?" she asked, stroking his hair back on one side and setting a hand on his pale forehead...he looked so tired, and she could hear his stomach gurgling and groaning nonstop.

"...My belly hurts," the Enforcer responded quietly, his eyes closed.

Akane reached down to force her hand under his own so she could gently rub his stomach. "Shion's right, you need to rest."

Suppressing a groan, Kougami pushed himself slowly into a sitting position, putting his head in his hand.

"I have to wrap a few more things up with Ginoza, but...I just wanted to...check on you." She looked away. "I was kind of worried, I guess. I never really thought of you as getting sick."

Kougami glanced over at her, but she didn't meet his gaze.

"Anyway..." She set her hand hesitantly on top of his larger one. "Head back and try to rest a little, okay? And...I'll visit you later."

Kougami closed his eyes and let out a short sigh. "...Yeah. All right."


	3. Chapter 3

Late nights at the PSB were commonplace, but three cups of coffee in, Akane was still falling asleep at her desk. They had all been working overtime recently to make a dent in the onslaught of paperwork that had been piling up, thanks in no small part to Makishima's antics. There were files that needed processing, cases that needed reviewing, research that need doing, and huge folders full of data that had to be taken care of. Akane found herself on the late shift with Ginoza and Yayoi, though for once, she had outlasted even Ginoza in order to finish up her work. It wasn't that she strove to be an overachiever just for the sake of it, but more often than not, it just happened. She wanted to get things done, and she didn't see why she shouldn't do everything she could to achieve that.

The rest of the building had long since grown quiet by the time she finally relented to shut down her console for the night. For a moment, she simply sat at her desk, her eyes slowly closing against her will...she very nearly fell asleep right there, but stirred after a moment and rose to pour out the dregs of her coffee mug.

In a stupor, she dragged her feet through the silent halls of the PSB...it was her intention to head to the on-call room to crash for the night. There were beds available there, and it was an easy place to grab a few hours of shut-eye for Inspectors who worked too late or otherwise needed a place to sleep that was closer than their own homes. It wouldn't be the first time Akane herself had taken advantage of the facility, and yet...

Her feet moved on their own, her mind too sleepy to really pay attention to where she was going...before she realized it, she was standing in front of a door that had somehow become more familiar than her own and shuffling past the threshold once it slid open.

Despite the late hour, Kougami was still awake, most of the way through a cigarette by the time Akane entered...he lowered the case file he had been pouring over in his free time (had she been any less comatose, Akane could have easily guessed who it belonged to) to see who was in his quarters and raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, Inspector...you okay?"

Akane looked around drowsily. __How did I end up here?__

"Um...yes," she mumbled. "I was just..."

Kougami watched her from over the top of his notes, then let out a vague chuckle, a smile touching his features for a moment as he rose to his feet. The bruising and red marks on his body had mostly faded throughout the day, difficult to even make out in the low light...he draped a blanket over Akane, and she let her forehead drop like a dead weight against his chest as he stood in front of her.

"I got lost," she murmured from somewhere around his torso. "I guess. I don't know. I'm..."

"You're not lost," Kougami said, setting a warm hand on her shoulder. "What are you still doing here?"

"I was working, and..."

The Enforcer sighed, securing the blanket more firmly around her. "Go figure. Sounds like Gino's been rubbing off on you..."

He nudged her over to the couch as he spoke, adjusting the pillow he'd been leaning against and clearing various papers and folders onto the coffee table so she could lie down.

"Get some sleep. You're no good to anyone if your Hue gets cloudy."

Akane shook her head vaguely as she settled onto the couch, the humor in his statement going straight over her head. "My Hue won't get cloudy..."

"Right." After reaching down briefly to make sure the blanket reached her feet, Kougami straightened up. He was going to have to find somewhere else to sleep now...

He faltered slightly as Akane's hand shot out from beneath the cover to take hold of his wrist without warning, eying her warily for a moment or so. Lingering only for a moment, he again attempted to move further away, but it only served to tighten her grip.

Pausing for a few moments or so, Kougami gradually relented to sit down on the edge of the couch next to her, though it did little to convince her to let go...he rested his arm on his knee so she could continue clutching his wrist, looking down at her over his shoulder.

"You keep it so cold in here," Akane murmured vaguely into the pillow she didn't remember resting her head on. "But you're always warm."

Wrestling on and off with a low-grade fever for the past couple of weeks, Kougami fairly certain that was the reason why, closing his eyes as her thumb ran repetitively over his wrist.

"You should get some sleep, Tsunemori."

He began to move again, but it only made Akane tighten her hold on him again, her arm wrapping across his waist in order to keep a good grip on his arm. Heaving a sigh of defeat, Kougami slid carefully underneath her so she could rest her head on his lap...the lone couch came standard for an Enforcer's quarters and wasn't meant for two people to sleep on, so he sat in the far corner while Akane stretched out across the length of it, leaning back to finish off his cigarette.

"You're so loud," Akane murmured.

"I didn't say anything."  
She chuckled vaguely. "No, your stomach's making noises again."

"Sorry."

"It's okay." She pressed her nose against him briefly without opening her eyes. "Are you feeling any better?"

"A little."

He faltered slightly as Akane's arms settled around his waist, evidently assuming him to be part of the pillow and pulling him toward her with a contented sigh. Kougami leaned over to toss the end of his cigarette in the ash tray and then looked down to survey the predicament he found himself in. All he could really do was cautiously ease himself further down onto the couch until he was horizontal next to Akane, trying not to displace her as he did so...there wasn't much room, but with the Inspector halfway draped over his body anyway, it was enough for both of them. Pulling his arm out from under her as her head settled half-consciously onto his chest, he readjusted the blanket around both of them and then took up his case files again to read.

"...Good night, Kougami-san..."

Kougami glanced down briefly from beneath the document he was looking over, but she was already asleep. "'Night, Inspector."

Akane awoke embarrassed the next morning as her surroundings came into focus, along with the sudden sense that she had most certainly outstayed her welcome. She hadn't meant to fall asleep, but then again, she hadn't really meant to wander into Kougami's room in the first place. She barely remembered the night before, having already been mostly asleep by the time she went to visit him, but it didn't take long for her to realize what must have happened.

__And I'm going to be late...__

Her wrist comm was buzzing softly to remind her of such, and she carefully lifted her head from Kougami's chest, a bright flush already coloring her features even as she blinked herself awake...she hated to think what the Enforcer she was sleeping on top of must have thought of her, but faltered abruptly as she looked down at him, her expression growing somber.

"...Kougami?"

The moment she sat up, he curled onto his side, but otherwise didn't respond...she reached out to lightly brush the hair from ashen features, placing a hand to his fever-stricken forehead in deep concern. Despite the fact that he was asleep, there were circles under his eyes and his jaw was tense, teeth clenched slightly from the chills that were running through him. Akane stroked the back of his neck gently, then reached down to silence his comm device around his limp wrist as it buzzed at him to wake up.

She sent a quick message to Ginoza to inform him that she would be there soon, then reached down to carefully lift Kougami's head from the arm of the couch so she could slip a pillow underneath it.

__You're supposed to be getting better...__

Her own wrist comm buzzed at her again impatiently, but she ignored it for the time being. She knew she had to get going, or she really would be late, but as soon as her shift was over she was going to insist that Kougami check himself into the PSB's medical facility. It was one thing to have Shion give him a quick once-over, but the man was clearly ill.

__Someone should have noticed sooner.__

But it seemed that no one really noticed Enforcers unless they were doing something wrong, Akane had come to realize...and with a sinking feeling, she began to wonder if she was part of the problem. Had she become so accustomed to her role as an Inspector that she hadn't even realized how sick Kougami was getting?

She rubbed his stomach gently, relieved, at least, that it wasn't churning anymore, but his fever was far more pressing...she glanced down as her wrist comm buzzed again, then disappeared into the bathroom for a few minutes. When she emerged, it was with a dampened washcloth, which she placed carefully over Kougami's forehead before stroking the back of his neck again and straightening up.

"Kougami-san...I really do have to go now," she whispered. "I'll come right back after our shift, I promise. Just...feel better."

Ginoza was decidedly less than thrilled to have Akane not only show up late, but do so without Kougami in her company.

"Well, that's one problem down," he griped. "Where's the other one?"

"Mr. Ginoza...um..." Akane faltered, but then straightened and squared her shoulders as she addressed him. "I've deemed Mr. Kougami to be in no condition for active duty at this time, sir...requesting backup assistance from another Enforcer to cover his shift."

Ginoza's eyes narrowed. "Why? What's the matter with him?"

"He's...he's just not feeling well, sir," Akane explained hesitantly, though she knew Kougami would be upset with her later for doing so, especially when they were so close to pinning down Makishima's position again. "This is an extremely important mission. Everyone present should...be at their best."

Ginoza's steely gaze bore into her for a few moments, and she nearly faltered, second-guessing herself...but then he sighed and nodded.

"...Very well. We'll have Masaoka and Kagari accompany us instead." He pushed his glasses up his nose. "Let's go. Everyone will need to be briefed with an update on the situation, and then we can begin prepping for the operation.'

The target was an abandoned series of warehouses on the outskirts of the division. Allegedly empty after years out of commission, but intelligence reports suggested that as of late, someone had been taking advantage of the dusty old factory technology inside and speccing it for their own specific needs. Based on the products that were being smuggled out the back doors and the clientele spotted around the area, all evidence pointed toward the warehouses serving as one of the cogs in Makishima's plans. The weaponry being generated from within matched recent terrorist incidents that had been linked to the elusive man...which meant it was time for the PSB to get involved.

The operation had to be carefully executed with extreme caution, and yet, as Akane entered through a side door of one of the abandoned factories along with Ginoza and the two Enforcers, she was surprised to find that there appeared to be no one inside. The place was dark, desolate, and quiet...they ventured forward gradually, weapons drawn. At the very least, she had expected Makishima's lackeys. She doubted that the man himself would make an appearance, but there should have been people running the operation that they were trying to shut down...

__Something doesn't feel right.__

It was as the four of them edged cautiously into the center of the facility, surrounded by lifeless machinery and conveyor belts, that the overhead lights suddenly flared, temporarily blinding them all as they flickered to life across the length of the ceiling.

"Well, well, well. I'm touched to have so many gather in my honor."

Raising the hand that wasn't gripping her Dominator to shield her eyes, Akane squinted up at the second-floor platform that ran around the perimeter of the factory...her vision had yet to adjust, but she could just about make out a hazy figure standing up there, and a shock of white hair.

"Welcome, officers...I encourage you all to make yourselves comfortable, as you'll find that you won't be able to leave this place any time soon."


	4. Chapter 4

Standing back-to-back with her colleagues, Akane found herself at a stalemate. They had miscalculated – grievously. It was obvious now that the entire thing had been a setup, because as always, Makishima was one step ahead. Around them, the emergency lockdown mechanics from within the factory had been triggered, sealing the exits and passageways and trapping the four of them in the central area over which Makishima himself surveyed them from the second floor railing. Along the upper perimeter, Kagari and Masaoka had glimpsed others, too, their identities obscured by gas masks, but they were making themselves scarce...and for good reason. All the PSB officers still had their Dominators.

Makishima seemed unperturbed, however, as he looked down upon them, and despite the fact that she already knew what would happen, Akane aimed her weapon at him anyway.

"I'm almost disappointed," he called down to them. "I prefer chess, but what you've given me is a game of checkers. A hop and a skip and it's the end of the line...but I suppose it was bound to come to this eventually."

"Do not engage!" Ginoza snapped, though his voice was wrought with bitterness...Akane could tell from his tone that he blamed himself for their predicament. "Focus on an escape route."

"There isn't one, where you are," Makishima dismissed from above. "It wouldn't be a very good trap, if there were."

"Yeah, bite me!" Kagari retorted, earning a sharp glare from Ginoza. "You shouldn't have showed your face around here, trust me!"

The man chuckled in response and Akane ducked her head a little, eyes still darting around the area. Surely a mechanism of some sort, or an emergency switch that would shut off the lockdown...something. Anything. She didn't want to hang around to find out why Makishima wanted them confined to the room like rats in a cage, appreciating the fact that Kagari was (somewhat unintentionally) buying them some time with his protests.

It was short-lived, however, and her attention was drawn back to the tyrant standing above them as he held up a gas mask of his own.

"The human body is a curious thing," he lamented. "Susceptible to so many things...solids, liquids, gasses; almost anything can be used against it, even the things that are intended to be beneficial. Too much, or too little, and even the most benevolent of resources can become deadly."

Akane lowered her useless Dominator, drawing herself up in what she hoped was a defiant manner to address him.

"So that's your purpose for luring us here?" she demanded. "Just...to kill us? How un-creative for someone like you."

Makishima smiled slightly.

"It appears that way," he mused. "But at the same time...I so often find that you are the ones who attempt to stifle my creativity. If I were to find a thorn in my side, why would I not remove it? Or should I say...you are the hands and feet of Sibyl, the ultimate dampener of all things creative. A dictator's reach can only stretch so far without the use of his limbs."

He gestured around them. "Can you at least appreciate the irony? These lockdown mechanics were installed as emergency safety measures in the event that factory conditions became...unsafe. Intended to keep the results of any chemical spills, equipment malfunctions, and the like, contained, while shielding those on the outside. But it seems...you all find yourselves on the inside, instead. An unfortunate predicament indeed, what with the ventilation system full to bursting with arsenic-based gas compounds just waiting to be unleashed."

Akane pressed further into Ginoza's back, gripping the weapon at her side and holding the man's gaze defiantly in spite of the fact that her pulse was racing. She could feel the tension in her colleagues, too, and yet...there wasn't a thing she could think to do.

"Like hell you'll get away with something like this," Masaoka grunted. "You think getting rid of us is gonna take care of all your problems? Typical for your generation, with the quick fixes."

"Prattle on with your last breaths if you wish," Makishima smiled, lifting his gas mask again. "A man's only hope is that his final words are good ones-,"

A shot rang out across the high walls of the factory, and Akane's eyes widened as Makishima lashed out to grab his hand, the mask falling from his grip onto the ground floor far below. For a moment, she couldn't imagine what had happened, the noise still echoing inside her head, but she heard Ginoza speak beside her.

"Kougami..."

Taken aback, Akane followed Gino's gaze up to the other side of the second floor railing behind them, short-lived relief flooding her before she realized that the Enforcer was barely standing. Kougami had never struck her as one particularly concerned with his appearance, but his suit was even more disheveled than usual, his messy hair clinging slightly to his stark-white features as he wavered where he stood, knees shaking slightly in an effort to keep himself upright. He held the early-millennium revolver steady across the divide at Makishima's head, but his aim was off in his current state...judging by the look in his hazy eyes, the bullet that had left his weapon was clearly meant as a fatal one.

"Kougami!" Akane called, anxious. He looked as though he were about to collapse, and if he would just throw the revolver down to her, she could...

To her surprise, Makishima looked just as taken aback as she felt, though it was only for a moment before he recovered himself, gripping his bloodied hand.

"Well, well...I never expected to find __you __on your feet," he mused as he looked Kougami up and down, and Akane frowned suddenly at the comment. "You never cease to amaze me."

"Kougami!" Ginoza interrupted. "They're about to release an airborne hazard through the ventilation system..."

Not a moment later, there was a resounding hiss of releasing pressure as an opaque gas began to stream into the surrounding area through the air ducts...Kougami brought part of his coat up to cover his mouth and nose and took off in a sprint around the perimeter of the second-floor walkway, in hot pursuit of Makishima as the white-haired man, too, fled the vicinity in light of the incoming gas.

The four officers trapped down below brought their jackets up to their faces as well, though there was little else they could do for the time being.

"We're sitting ducks," Kagari muttered vehemently.  
Masaoka shook his head. "Give Ko a minute, huh? He'll find a way to either shut it off or disable the lockdown system..."

Makishima was faster than Kougami had anticipated, but he could still hear his prey's footsteps echoing up ahead. The distance between them made his blood boil, but he knew he had to find a way to help the others before he pursued the other man too deeply into the factory warehouses...gun still clasped in both hands, he rounded another corner in time to see a flash of white hair before it disappeared from view.

__Damn it-!__

He lunged forward in an effort to stay on Makishima's trail, but then slumped back against the wall again, his breathing ragged. The corridor up ahead blurred and then doubled, and Kougami tugged absently on the unbuttoned collar of his shirt, the material clinging to his heated skin. The fever was making him dizzy, his limbs refused to cooperate, and his stomach was killing him...but the majority of Division 1 was still trapped in the main area of the factory and running out of air. Kougami pushed away from the wall again and stumbled down the corridor, following the sounds of Makishima's fading footsteps. He passed by a sealed door labeled "Control Room" and did a double-take...with his wrist comm tech, it didn't take long to override the security and force his way inside. Upon the wall of camera monitors within, he could see a smokey image of the other PSB officers on one of the screens, and slammed his fist down onto the override for the lockdown. A few moments later, he saw the exits slide open again on the same monitor to free the rest and turned on his heel, pausing briefly to catch his breath before taking off in pursuit of Makishima once more.

__Whe__ __re did you go?__

He hastened down the hallway, checking into the row of offices situated there, then bolted around the next turn...a foot colliding with his head so hard that for a moment or so, he could only see stars. His body and the gun skidded across the polished floor in opposite directions, and felt his back hit something hard, gritting his teeth for a few moments as he waited for his vision to clear. The first thing that came back into focus was the same foot swinging up to kick him while he was down...he managed to raise his arms to partially block the blow at the last moment, sweeping his own leg under Makishima's to trip him up. The white-haired man jumped backwards, giving Kougami enough time to stagger to his feet, his breathing ragged with the pounding of his head. The discomfort did little to deter his bloodlust, however, and he lunged at Makishima...the two of them grappled for a time before Kougami finally managed to throw all his weight into slamming the other up against the wall. Makishima coughed, grinning at him, and knocked him away...Kougami wavered, but then moved forward and struck the other man hard across the face, sending him reeling.

"Heh...so you've still got some fight in you."

Rubbing his jaw, Makishima struck out in retaliation...Kougami blocked, but the impact had him stumbling slightly on already-shaky legs, and Makishima hit him hard in the stomach as a result.

"Sorry," he mused as the man grunted and slumped. "Are you a little tender there?"

Kougami's blazing eyes narrowed, wavering for a moment until Makishima got close enough for him to lash out, then jamming his elbow in an uppercut to the man's angled chin and then kicking him to the ground. Makishima coughed, wiping a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth, then grabbing Kougami's arm and wrenching it behind his back so that he could slam the Enforcer up against the same wall he'd been pinned against himself just moments before.

"You humor me," he murmured against Kougami's ear. "You shouldn't even be standing."

"Yeah, so what did you do to me?" Kougami relented, his voice a low growl as Makishima twisted his arm. "I take it it's your fault that I feel like shit..."

Makishima yanked him away from the wall long enough to spin him around to face one another before slamming him up against it again. Kougami felt his eyes closing for a moment against his will, his vision tunneling, and shook his head to clear it. Makishima placed a hand to the side of the Enforcer's feverish cheek, smirking as he jerked immediately away from the touch.

"Nothing that has had much of an impact on your reflexes, clearly," he murmured. "Just...a little experiment, is all."

His wrists pinned to the wall in Makishima's grasp, Kougami jerked a little in vain attempt to free himself.

"What kind of 'experiment'? How long do I have?"

Fair eyebrows lifted in mock-surprise, and Makishima shook his head. "How __long__? Do you really think that I would do that...kill you, in such a mundane fashion? And you, of all people?"

Bitterly aware that most of what was keeping him on his feet was Makishima's grip, Kougami held his glare fiercely. "So then what?"

"I just...needed to keep you out of the way for a little while, that's all." Makishima chuckled. "Though I have to admit, I underestimated your bull-headed nature. In this great orchestration, your fellow agents are the most inconsiderate of audience members. I expect your opposition, and I welcome it...but for the rest of them..." He shook his head. "Chess is a two-player game, Shinya Kougami."

Kougami lashed out as Makishima released one of his wrists in favor of moving his hand down to the Enforcer's side, but before he knew it, he was being slammed up against the wall again and hit in the stomach.

"Ahh..."

Makishima smirked, releasing the other man and allowing him to slide down the wall to the floor with his arms wrapped around his middle.

"The contagion entered your system a few weeks prior...I watched you as you went with your precious coworkers to Club XOXO downtown..."

Kougami clenched his teeth, the name conjuring the memory of a case they had been investigating a few weeks prior...afterwards, they had stopped for drinks at the club. It had been a day or two later that he'd first started to feel unwell...

"So you __were __there," he muttered. He'd told Ginoza that the case had Makishima's stench all over it, but the Inspector hadn't believed him.

"The concoction is something of my own creation...I had someone slip it into your drink, yet as I'm sure you realize now, it is completely undetectable. And through such an innocent means...even someone as shrewd and discerning as yourself had no idea, so how could anyone else?"

Kougami's eyes narrowed tiredly. "...Anyone else?"

Makishima kicked him hard onto his back, his foot pressing carefully, warningly into the Enforcer's stomach to deter him from trying to move.

"Anyone else, everyone else. Sibyl's blind, deaf followers. They have been fed nothing but lies their entire lives, so much so that they cannot taste the truth. And so...they will be fed another lie; a lie that the food and drink that is provided to them on a daily basis, that they put their trust in so unquestioningly, is no longer safe. Even the blind can see an entire population falling ill. And once they finally start to question the resources that Sibyl provides...at last, they will open their eyes and start to question Sibyl as well..."

Kougami closed pale, shaky hands around Makishima's ankle to try and force his foot off his stomach, but he didn't have the energy for it, his head arching backwards as Makishima pressed the heel of his foot deeper into his belly in retaliation.

"You've gotten a little soft," the man observed, his grin shark-like as he leaned his weight into Kougami to look down at him. "Hm. Can you believe it, Kougami? I've finally caught you. Perhaps this will be fun after all."


	5. Chapter 5

When Kougami first came to, it took his eyes a moment to adjust to the failing light...joints stiff, it was his first instinct to move, yet he found he couldn't. His eyes began to drift shut again, but he caught himself just before he drifted off again and gave a sharp shake of his head to try and clear it.

"Nhh..."

His wrists twisted a little above his head, raw skin grinding against raw leather...he could feel something - brick - against his bare back, his shoes grazing the hard ground beneath him only lightly, as though lightly suspended.

"Nrgh!"

Pain sharpening his senses, Kougami closed one eye for a moment at the sensation of something rough digging deeply into his torso. His vision clearing a little, he looked slowly down at himself.

A thick, uncured strap was pulled around the middle of his exposed midriff like a belt, binding him to the wall behind him and taking most of his weight...though his hands were bound together over his head, it was mostly the strip around his gut that was suspending him in the poor light of the barren, unfamiliar room. For a moment, he thought his neck was bound as well, but after a few moments he realized that the only thing around his neck was his own black tie, hanging loose around his bare collarbones even though his shirt and jacket were gone.

His fingers twitched in the bindings for a moment, but he knew before he tried to move them that his gun was no longer attached to his actual belt, and it felt as though his cell phone was no longer in his pants pocket either.

_Tch...ngh...so tight..._

He flinched slightly as he glanced down at the hard, unforgiving leather strap around his belly, then looked around the room again.

He couldn't say where he was, but no one wanted to wake up the way he had (well, perhaps Shion), and gradually, his hazy memories started to fall back into place, and his unfocused eyes grew suddenly sharp and wolf-like.

_Makishima..._

Almost no sooner had he spoken then the door at the far end of the room clanged as a heavy lock on the other side was released, yawning open a moment later and framing Makishima's pale, ghostly figure like a specter against the gloom. Kougami's eyes narrowed immediately, predatory, but the man he faced seemed unperturbed, closing the door almost matter-of-factly behind himself and placing his hands behind his back as he strolled idly toward Kougami's slumped form.

"So, you're awake."

"Makishima..." Despite his predicament, the bloodlust in Kogami's tone hung in the empty room as though the word alone might devour the elusive man.

Makishima smiled vaguely.

"Aren't you going to say anything else? It's been a while, Kougami."

Kogami glanced around. No way out, no way to contact the others. How long had he been there?

"It's been several days," Makishima mused, as though reading his mind.

Hands still clasped behind his back, he paced slowly in front of Kogami, once, then back again, coming to stand inches from the captured Enforcer as though to demonstrate how close he could get without Kougami being able to touch him.

"As such, your friends at the PSB disappoint me at every turn. Even I expected them to have tracked you down by now...and to be honest with you, I'm running out of ways to pass the time."

Every muscle in Kougami's body tensed, poised and ready, as Makishima lifted an elegant hand, but it was only to unlatch the leather belt around Kougami's midsection, letting it fall away. Kougami clenched his teeth, but otherwise didn't react...the pressure had been nearly unbearable, but somehow he didn't feel any better now that it had been released, keenly aware that there was nothing protecting his sore, reddened belly now except for his own necktie. In fact, he thought he would have rather dealt with having the belt cut into his torso.

Makishima was by far the last person on earth that he'd want ever seeing the state of his currently soft, weak tummy.

He gave a sharp, brief shake of his head again, trying unsuccessfully to clear away the last of the haze, and he caught a faint smile pass over Makishima's face as he did so...and before he could do anything else, the pale man had reached out and set the tips of his long, ice-cold fingers against Kougami's vulnerable abdomen.

"I've been starving you for days," he murmured in the same, dreamy voice that Kougami had heard him use too many times when committing murder, or any other one of his twisted crimes. "You're completely empty."

He tilted his hand gracefully to the side to look up at Kougami, who towered over him several inches more than usual from the way he was tied up. Makishima's palm pressed lightly up against the Enforcer's soft, hollowed-out belly, rubbing the empty chasm for a moment or so until Kougami sucked it in to try and get away from his touch, the area growing suddenly concave. But it wasn't until Makishima had spoken that Kougami became aware the powerful ache of hunger somewhere deep inside him, not that there was anything he could do about it. He scoffed.

"So, what? You're just planning to let me starve to death here if they don't make it in time?" he surmised, not bothering to keep the hint of disappointment out of his voice...it didn't seem up to par with Makishima's usual, more genius antics.

Makishima seemed indifferent, however, and another soft smile graced his features as he slipped his hand inside the crisp white jacket he was wearing.

"It disappoints me that you would draw such an inadequate conclusion," he murmured, and Kougami's visage darkened as he watched the white-haired man pull out a small pill. "Recently I often find myself in deep reflection of the human mind. Humans are so...dull, in their default state. Drawing even an ounce of intrigue out of them is as drawing blood from a stone."

He leaned in closer, his face turned up inches from Kougami's, pill held up between in the low light of the space between them.

"There's a mind theory that, in the most dire circumstances, all humans will respond the same. No matter their convictions, their strength, their outlook. This proposal is something I find...disappointing, but unsurprising. Do you think it's true, Shinya Kougami?"

Kougami didn't humor him with an answer, his stormy blue eyes burning into Makishima's calm grey ones...he twisted his wrists in their bindings over his head again, but it was no use. There was nothing he could do, not the way he was now, but stubbornly, he continued holding the other man's gaze even as the tablet was forced past his lips, hand coming over his mouth until he swallowed.

Makishima smiled, and stepped back.

"How much longer will you continue underestimating me? Of course I won't kill you by such a pointless means," he said, reading Kougami's expression as the Enforcer coughed. "This is...an appetite stimulator. Powerful, fast-acting. Nothing more."

Kougami's eyes narrowed, looking the pale man sharply up and down, trying to get a read on him.

"For appetite? What's the point of - nhh. Nhhhh..."

Makishima's eyes glinted, a flicker of eagerness crossing his usually dreamy visage as Kougami faltered for a moment, frowning and twisting in slight discomfort. Another idle grin played across Makishima's face as the same blazing blue eyes shot up to lock with his own again, a chuckle almost bubbling up in his throat at the fire in the other man's gaze.

"Nrgh...nhh...what did you do to me...?" Kougami managed to growl, twisting again at the sudden, growing sensation of discomfort somewhere in his guts that he couldn't quite place.

Makishima placed his hands behind his back again, linking his fingers.

"What are your thoughts, _detective_?" he mused lightly. "A powerful medicine meant to bolster the appetites of the sick and the depressed, just another 'quick fix' that Sybil shoves down the mouths of its sightless, helpless people...currently dissolving instead within a man whose insides already ache for food, on an unbearably weak and ravaged belly, deprived of food, starved and emptied for days on end..."

"Nhh...ahh..." Kougami twisted slightly again, though it was partially because he had suddenly felt Makishima's cold, unforgiving hands slide slowly over his exposed stomach, moving from the middle around to his sides, resting almost hungrily on his flank as his own breathing began to pick up a little despite himself...he wouldn't give damned Makishima the satisfaction, biting back another utterance as he began to feel something shifting deep in his belly.

"An addendum," mused the other man, his own grey eyes like that of a fox honing in on its prey even as the shit-eating grin continued to play across his face. "To me, Kougami, human psychology is only a means to an end. Any interests I may have in the latest and greatest theories are fleeting these days. Mm...what would those great minds, I wonder, think about me if they knew that in fact, my interests in almost anything have been fleeting since your group began to pursue me."

His hands still resting on the tensed sides of Kougami's stomach, he leaned upwards to murmur close to the Enforcer's ear.

"A more recent interest all but drowns out the rest, and as with any anomoly in the system, I find myself eager to pursue and consume it."

A low chuckle escaped him, and despite his best efforts, Kougami groaned through his teeth, twisting again as he felt sweat break out across the back of his neck.

_What's...going on inside me...? My gut..._

Makishima's fingertips dug lightly into the sides of his abdomen, and there was nothing he could do about how closely the white-haired man was murmuring to him.

"Do you want to know what that all-consuming interest is, Shinya Kougami?"

Kougami jerked his head away roughly from the other man, his teeth clenched and bared slightly as the strange sensation continued to grow and shift inside him.

But Makishima only let out a slight chuckle through his nose, and in a sudden, swift movement, he pressed his hand feverishly up against Kougami's middle, his other arm braced against the small of the Enforcer's back, expelling a low breath against the other's ear.

"You," he uttered on a breath, his tone suddenly tightening with intensity as he rubbed Kougami's belly in a slow circle, as though to claim it. "At first, it was your mind alone that compelled me, so much like my own and so different from the bumbling fools that saturate your little detective friends. But then..."

He looked down between them as his cold hand ran over the Enforcer's stomach again, yet offered little comfort to it as he did so.

"Hgh...nrrhh...get off me..." Kougami managed, his insides aching with hunger. "Ohh..."

Makishima smirked.

"Our mind games, I can play easily from afar," he murmured. "It was only natural, therefore, that I began experimenting with playing other games from afar, as well."

The tip of his index finger circled Kougami's straining bellybutton calmly as he talked, his fluid and almost lazy demeanor in stark contract to the Enforcer's tensed muscles and steadily-increasing discomfort.

"Mm...I don't know at which point it was that I decided to commit to experimenting with different ways to hurt you - without you realizing it, you see, is the game," he uttered, patting the heaving belly in his hands a little. "But as always, the MWPSB makes things so easy it almost becomes boring. I'd seen, in our previous encounters, how much they appeared to be overworking you, knew how little they care for the well-being of Enforcers so long as they keep getting the job done...how often you'd wrap up one of your foolish investigations with your meals forgotten and your insides writhing from the constant stress anyway. And so at first, all I had to do was set up petty criminals with a steady stream of meaningless crimes, knowing that the uptick in activity would have you working like that around the clock."

Kougami clenched his teeth again, fighting back a sharp noise as his stomach suddenly cramped, so violently that he would have doubled over had it not been for the bindings holding his arms above his head. It was as though there was a distant storm brewing in his belly, steadily growing closer, his insides beginning to grow chaotic and restless. He could barely concentrate on what Makishima was saying...along with the hunger, the desire to actually eat something to quell it was gradually growing stronger. He fought it stubbornly, knowing the appetite stimulant was erupting inside him, but a moment or so later he twisted uncomfortably again, as though to try and twist away from the strange sensations starting up in his belly.

"You...ngh...you set up crimes to hurt people just to...ghh...get at me?" he growled, managing to look angry despite his discomfort.

"I'd discovered that the meals provided to Enforcers contained at the MWPSB were prepared ahead of time at one of the local supply chains and then delivered...another laughable challenge. I simply planted someone among the service staff who delivered the portioned packages of the Hyperoats you are all provided, had them tamper with the meals being given to you specifically. An earlier, more subtle version of the same tasteless stimulant currently coursing through you, as well as a supplement designed to increase weight, so I would see visible evidence that my plan had worked from afar," Makishima said lazily, cupping the slight chub around Kougami's beltline briefly in indication and jiggling it a little. "Combined with the pressures of the job, I don't doubt it worked just as I intended...like watching a play to which I already know the ending. Dull."

He shook his head, tracing the fading red lines across Kougami's panting gut where the leather belt had originally been cutting into him.

"I could tell the next time we encountered one another that you had been stress eating for weeks as a result," he mused slyly. "Not that an Enforcer at the PSB would ever let themselves go...but I could tell you'd become, mm, softer around the middle regardless. Almost everyone has an innate weakness, Mr. Kougami, even if they don't know about it until its drawn out. Hn...in your case, this is your weakness."

He jabbed Kougami's turbulent tummy in indication, forcing another strained grunt from the man.

"I suppose I could simply have continued...but it became too easy, too boring too fast. I wished to test us both...a more elaborate setup to occupy my time. To find more compelling ways to hurt you. To find new and different things to experiment on your stomach with, without being caught."

He chuckled.

"Of course, I orchestrated the lead that 'tipped you off' and sent the MWPSB sniffing around that nightclub...when you all realized it was a dead end, you all hung around for drinks. Mm... So many variables to consider, and yet it all played out just as I'd calculated."

Kougami glared at him defiantly, but the intensity of his gaze was lessened, the ends of his hair starting to cling to the sides of his face a little as he panted. The hunger was starting to grow intense, his belly cramping again in preparation for food that did not come, feeling like a shipwreck was crashing up constantly against his insides. He felt something rising up in his gut, and sucked it in quickly, but it was too late.

_Gggggwooooooooooooooooorgh..._

"Nh...uhh..." Kougami slumped, his soft belly straining as Makishima's cruel hands flew up to it again, feeling it eagerly as it visibly quaked from the intensity of his stomach rumble. "Ohhh...ah..."

Makishima smirked again and rubbed his belly for him, though he didn't look at all concerned when the Enforcer slumped further forwards, immediately exhausted.

"Mm...what I put in your belly while you drank with your coworkers at the club that night was not a stimulant, nor anything for your weight," he said, his eyes glinting maliciously. "A unique creation belonging to an...associate of mine, made just for me, to test out on you. Much longer-lasting, and far more interesting."

Suddenly, he moved closer again, shoving his hand up hungrily against Kougami's belly and subsequently pushing the Enforcer up against the brick wall behind him, a lilt of eagerness seeping into his own.

"Tell me," he breathed as Kougami slumped weakly against him after trying unsuccessfully to squirm away from the wall. "What did it feel like inside you? Tell me of the havoc it wreaked on your guts over those many weeks...how painfully and constantly you ached...did you lose sleep? Struggle to eat? Hn...I would have expected it to affect your work, but that only reminds me not to underestimate you, Shinya...spare me no details. I have only the barest of summaries regarding its potency and effectiveness...tell me exactly what it did to you..."

Kougami bit back a groan as another cramp wracked his body, but despite the fact that he was slumped over and sweating, he still managed to scoff.

"Couldn't...ngh...tell you if I wanted to. I could barely...feel it," he panted, a lie. "O-ohh..."

_Gwwwwwwwwwwwoooorrrrrlp. Grgrgrlgrlgrlghhhhhhhhhhh._

It was as though there was a caged animal inside him, rabid and massive, consuming his stomach with a hunger he had never felt before, his entire belly cramping visibly again as he moaned and groaned.

Makishima had been wrong on one count, however, he realized drearily. He'd spoken of the MWPSB's treatment of their Enforcers, how their negligence and lack of concern for overworking their employees had only contributed to Makishima's machinations...and yet...

_Akane_...

Kougami closed his eyes for a moment, fleeting memories running through his head. Akane, peering into his room to ask him whether he was all right...Akane, laying him down on his couch when his stomach hurt and tending to it while she lectured on not working so hard...sleeping against him with her arm curled protectively around his sick, abused belly...talking Ginoza into letting him stay off-duty to rest...

He jerked a little at the sound of a noise nearby...the door across the room was opening once again, and for a wild moment, Kougami thought it was going to be Akane. She'd found him...

It wasn't Akane, however, nor any of the officers from the MWPSB. A lackey of Makishima's, no doubt, pushing a cart draped in a white tablecloth.

The smell of the food piled high atop the cart reached Kougami before he realized what it was, and the smell alone caused an audible gasp to escape him, his eyes widening as his stomach cramped so viciously in its desperation for food that for a moment he thought he was going to black out.

_I'm so_..._HUNGRY_...

Makishima turned as the cart was left with the two of them, though he'd set it to a halt just out of Kougami's reach, not the man had his hands free to get to it anyway.

"Mm...what's the matter?" he mused dryly, rubbing Kougami's empty belly. "Are you imagining eating it?"

Kougami knew it was all just Hyperoats, but you could craft almost any food out of those nowadays, and the spread laid before him was filled with it. A massive roast, piles of vegetables, tempura-fried and steamed, piles of warm dumplings, skewered meats, two massive pitchers of juice, dishes of fried, cooked, roasted, and raw foods of all kinds. Kougami's stomach groaned agonizingly, begging to be fed, but Makishima made no move to comfort it.

"Does the smell bother you?" he murmured instead, holding his hand against Kougami's stomach so he could feel the now almost-constant gurgling and groaning inside it. "Your appetite must be growing enormous by now..."

_Grrrrrrrrrrghhhhh. Gwwwwwwwrrrgghhh. Rrrrrrrrrrrgrggghhrhh._

"Ghh...shit...oh, my stomach-!"

Makishima smirked giddily as the words slipped from the stubborn Enforcer out at last, but then scowled as, abruptly, the pager on his hip went off.

He paused, one hand still resting on Kougami's aching stomach, and read the page before sighing and slipping it back into his pocket, smiling wryly up at the other man.

"Let's put a pin in that, then," he murmured, dipping down briefly to lift the discarded strap of leather from the floor. "Though I admit I have an idle curiosity in what this will do to your Psycho Pass..."

He leaned forward, sliding the leather strap through the holsters on the wall behind the Enforcer's back and then drawing it slowly, tightly over Kougami's squirming, straining stomach, fighting against it as it rose chaotically, rapidly up and down as the other man panted.

"How much longer do we have until your friends finally find us, I wonder?" Makishima wondered aloud idly. "I suppose you'll need to wait and see whether the next person who comes through that door is them or me."

"Uhhn...ngh..."

Makishima closed his eyes for a moment, his smile spreading wider. Then, swiftly, he turned on his heel, leaving the piping hot serving cart full of food a short ways away from Kougami as he crossed the room once more and, with a final, cocky glance back in the Enforcer's direction, disappeared through it and closed it behind him.

The moment he was gone, everything Kougami had been holding back let loose...he slumped forward again with a gasp, his brow knitting and his eyes squeezing shut for a moment as he panted even more vigorously, barely able to do so thanks to the leather strap holding his belly in.

"Sh-shit...oh...nh...my stomach...UNH! My stomach...nhhhh...my _stomach_..."

_Grrwoowrrrgghhhhhhhhh. GRRLRLRRLRLLP. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGHHOWRRRRRPPP._

Kogami arched his back, pushing his belly even tighter against the binding, but it was no use, he couldn't get free...Makishima had made sure of that.

"Nhh...uhhh!"

Hunger rumbled desperately around in his gut, and the beast inside it seemed to have grown exponentially...it was now a roaring, growling monster that had taken over his helpless stomach, ravaging his weakened belly mercilessly from the inside out. Coupled with the insatiable, ravenous desire to eat, hazy blue eyes shifted over to the cart just out of reach. His appetite seemed to be taking over the rest of his senses all together, and he found himself imagining the sensation of having the plate of warm dumplings filling his gut, of having the full heavy roast pushing against his insides, practically hallucinating how good it would feel to put something, anything inside his empty belly...

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhh..."

His head arched back, his belly pushing outwards desperately against its binding, his hands twisting even though they couldn't reach it with his wrists bound...the sights and smells of the food overwhelmed him, his appetite and hunger both spiraling out of control entirely. If he could just eat something...anything...he needed food in his belly so badly...and yet, knowing he couldn't fulfill that desire unexpectedly pushed one single, clear thought into his head through the noise instead.

_Akane...it hurts..._


	6. Chapter 6

Though the sun rose and set, in the dim and windowless room Kougami was none the wiser to the passage of time. He could guess how long he had been confined, though it was only stubbornness that kept him from passing out entirely...if he lost consciousness, he'd lose track of the hours completely, and he needed to know how much time had gone by without Akane being able to find him. Anything longer three days...and he'd be in big trouble, though he doubted she would stand for anything more than two. Embarrassing, letting himself get captured...the least he could do was be awake when the PSB arrived.

He found, however, that aside from staying awake, he didn't have the strength for much else. His large scuffed hands remained limp in the bindings over his head, his head hung low and his vision dulling every so often as he stared dully at the concrete ground.

_Gwwooooorgh._

_Ngh...still? _He stirred, cracking open one eye slowly as his gaze drifted down to his own bare torso...he expelled a low, slightly exasperated breath. _Damn, I've gotten chubby..._

So Makishima had been targeting him the entire time...he'd told Gino he suspected the elusive man's involvement in the latest string of cases, but his focus had, as always, been so consumed with finding Makishima that he'd turned a blind eye to the fact that Makishima was after him, as well...

"Nrgh..."

His tie hung down limply from his neck as he slumped forward against his restraints...his breathing remained slightly labored even though his expression was groggy and worn out, exhausted in more ways than one. A short ways a way, he could still smell the copious amounts of food piled into the racks of the service bot that had been left in the otherwise empty room, though the aroma was no longer appealing; Hyperoats only lasted a few hours, but even though the food had long since gone bad, his gut still ached for it. If he hadn't trapped, he didn't know whether he'd have been able to trust himself not to eat it...

For the umpteenth time, he twisted his hands against the bindings overhead, trying to work them loose or find a way to maneuver his wrists through them...he had tried to force it at one point, earning himself a couple of broken fingers in the process, but even then he hadn't been able to get himself free.

_Grrgrggggghhhhhhh_.

"Oh no. You're not still hungry, Mr. Kougami?"

Realizing belatedly that he had grown lost in his thoughts while his stomach growled beneath him, Kougami lifted his eyes slowly to survey Makishima, though the movement was subtle...he didn't have the energy for much else. His steel blue gaze, however, remained as wild as ever, eyes predatory as they fixed upon the pale man approaching him from across the room.

Makishima's long, pale fingers entwined idly with the end of the tie draped sround Kougami's neck, leaning forward to meet the look of murderous intent from the Enforcer head on.

"Nothing? Does this mean you're done talking?" he prompted, trailing the tip of the tie playfully over Kougami's navel. "That's a shame. Though they are few and far between, our conversations, Kougami, are much more interesting than so many others I've had."

He let the tie drop carelessly from his grasp, a slight smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he instead pressed a cold hand up against Kougami's flushed belly and saw the other man flinch sharply at the sensation.

A moment later, a deep gurgling sounded, and Makishima's smile broadened a little as he felt it against his palm, rubbing the area softly. He reached over with his other hand as he did so, pulling the inactive service bot closer. The scent of the food stored there, though stale, caused another ravenous growl to shake Kougami's middle, and Makishima chuckled mildly in amusement at the reaction.

"Well?" he pressed idly. "Are you hungry? A baseless human experience-,"

"Cut the crap, Makishima," Kougami bit, his appetite getting the better of his already foul mood. "Ghh...I don't know what your...sick obsession with my gut is, but like hell I'm...playing along with any of your bullshit..."

_GWWWOORGGHH_.

"Sh-shit...nrgh..."

Kougami slumped in the bindings again despite himself, and Makishima patted his middle, the sound hollow against his empty belly.

"You'd rather starve to death?" the pale man inquired, fingers trailing the underside of Kougami's gut...Kougami gritted his teeth as the sensation sent a wave of goosebumps racing over his skin despite himself. "I knew you were stubborn, but I didn't think you were stupid."

"You wouldn't let me starve to death," Kougami retorted dully, slumping against his bindings as Makishima pulled away. "You said as much yourself. It'd be too boring for you."

Makishima paused, then let out a light laugh.

"That's true."

Without warning, he suddenly grabbed Kougami's tie again, wrenching him forward so that their faces were inches apart.

"But it's too bad. You might have fared better if I were boring," he hissed, his pale grey eyes glinting with a different kind of hunger as they burned into Kougami's.

His palm slammed up against the Enforcer's mouth, fingertips digging into Kougami's jaw as he pushed a handful of food from the service bot into him...Kougami's expression came alive with rebellious fury, his gaze burning wildly into Makishima over the top of the man's hand. Makishima smirked determinedly back at him, his grip vice-like until at last, Kougami had no choice but to swallow, turning his head aside and coughing a little as he did so. Food made from Hyperoats only held its flavor for as long as it was good to eat, and it had been sitting out far longer than it should have...but despite the off taste and tell-tale signs of bad oats, a ravenous groan erupted from deep in his bowels as soon as the first mouthful hit his stomach, beckoning him to consume more despite himself. He whipped his head around, blue eyes burning fiercely into the ghostly man standing in front of him...his wrists twisted in his confinement again with the sudden urge to knock the idle smile right off Makishima's face with a cold hard fist, but Makishima was already moving toward him again.

He growled as a hand clamped back over his mouth, but with a sharp jerk of his head, he managed to break free this time, stubbornly expelling the mouthful of food the moment he was free...not a moment later, Makishima's fingers raked through his hair, forcing his head back and slamming more food into him...he jerked again, unsuccessfully, and finally had to swallow, panting a little as Makishima let go of him. His thick dark hair stood up wildly from where the pale fingers had raked through it, even more unkempt than usual, and his teeth were bared as he was released.

Makishima stood back to study him for a moment, eyes moving up and down as he chuckled.

"So that's why they refer to you Enforcers as 'hunting dogs'...I see now," he mused."The resemblance is uncanny. And you have the appetite of a wild dog, too..."

_Grgwwwrrgghhhhhhhhhhh_.

Makishima reached toward the service bot again.

"I'm impressed," he continued idly. "I didn't think you'd be able to stop yourself. I'm glad that I can always trust you not to disappoint me, Shinya, even if your resolve is undoubtedly short-lived."

_Grrgh. Grrllp. Grrghhr._

Kougami bit back a groan, clenching his teeth.

"Didn't realize...we were on a first name basis now," he uttered dully, though his tone was strained, his fists clenching as Makishima offered him food again and determinedly jerking his head away from it. "Never took you for...the sentimental type of psychopath – HHNNGHH!"

Makishima let the fist he had swung up deep into the middle of Kougami's aching stomach linger there for a few moments as he leaned in, a smile playing across his features as he murmured into the Enforcer's ear.

"No," he agreed. "But I'm good at faking it...don't you think?"

"G-ghh..."

Makishima twisted his fist deeper into Kougami's gut, smiling as the other man's abdominals squirmed and strained weakly against it.

"Ouh...shit...my belly..."

A sharp expulsion of air left him as Makishima finally withdrew, resting his palm lightly over the area he'd struck and rubbing it tauntingly as Kougami raggedly tried to catch his breath.

"Eat," he insisted, pushing another handful of food into the sick Enforcer and digging his fingertips into Kougami's jaw again until he swallowed.

"Ugh..."

Another mouthful was forced into him, and then another...despite the blow to his gut, Kougami could feel the insatiable hunger inside him starting to take hold, and as Makishima pressed a hand back over his mouth, he felt his resolve crack a little.

_Ngh...no...don't...eat it..._

But before he could stop himself again, Kougami suddenly tore feverishly into the food that Makishima held out to him, his body ignored his faltering attempts to hold back or pull away. The thrall of hunger inside him heightened the experience, and he groaned desperately, exhilarated by the sensation of food filling his ravenous belly as the powerful effects of the appetite stimulant pumping through his system whittled away at his conviction.

_Shit...I can't...stop..._

"Nrgh...u-unhh...ohh..."

Makishima smiled knowingly at the passionate utterances that forced their way from Kougami's throat, rubbing the Enforcer's writhing belly encouragingly with one hand while Kougami ate viciously out of the other, nearly choking in his desperation to get some food inside of him.

_Grrghhhllllrrpp. _

"Ungh...u-uhhh..."

It was a few minutes before finally, panting, Kougami forced himself to wrench his head away, gritting his teeth as he struggled to come to his senses...he jerked as Makishima tried to push more food into him, another low growl rising up into his throat as his gaze burned furiously into the other man's. Makishima smiled mildly, but then grabbed Kougami's tie again, wrenching him down so that they were at eye-level and he could force another handful of food past bared teeth. Kougami twisted his bound wrists uselessly again, struggling to catch his breath as he swallowed it...and then groaned bitterly as the oats filled his stimulated belly with unwanted pleasure, heavy and satisfying after enduring his heightened appetite for so long.

A satisfied look passed through Makishima's hard grey eyes as his charge relented to begin eating like a rabid dog once more...he rubbed the Enforcer's stomach again in wide circles, coaxing him to continue filling it with more and more expired food, and feeding him insistently when he refused. Kougami sucked his belly in weakly to escape the touch, but the pale fingers chased him, piercing the soft flesh there and probing lightly, forcing another deep, deep gurgle from down in his gut.

"Ghh...get off me..." Kougami growled in the moment before he was forced to down another mouthful.

But despite his words, a moment later he tried and failed to keep a strained groan of ecstasy escaping him at the amplified sensation of so much food growing heavier and heavier inside him...roughly, he tried to jerk his head away once once more, not wanting to give Makishima the satisfaction, but Makishima yanked him right back by his tie, and a moment later a hand clamped forcefully down over his mouth once more...he ate out of it with renewed passion, his wrists twisting defiantly in their bindings even as another reluctant but intoxicated moan escaped him.

_No...damn it...I can't hold all this..._

Closing one eye as he bit back a groan, Kougami clenched his teeth grimly as his gaze traveled over to the processed dishes stored in the body of the service bot...to his disgust, his belly was starting to weigh down the pale hand that cupped it, and it was only once he paused that he realized how much he'd eaten already. But even with the sensation of so much food pressing up against every inch of him, the intense hunger signals to his brain had yet to diminish, as did Makishima's insistence; his long fingertips dug into Kougami's stuffed tummy imploringly, and Kougami groaned into another mouthful of food being forced inside him.

"Nrgh...if you think I'm gonna beg you to stop, you should've pinned somebody else down," he growled defiantly, his fiery gaze hardening as he met Makishima's eyes again. "You keep this up, I'm just gonna hurl...ugh!"

A sharp groan left him forcefully as Makishima slapped the side of his firm belly, pulling back as the pale man leaned in toward him.

"And if you do, I'll start again," he uttered delicately. "Thanks to our Sybil overlords, there is and never will be any shortage of Hyperoats in this country...there's nothing stopping me from feeding you over and over until you can hold it all."

He patted Kougami's middle in indication, then shoved another handful of food into him, and then another, smiling as the Enforcer's determination faltered again and he resumed eating nearly as fast as the food could be brought to him, groaning with resigned pleasure as he did so. The sound reignited the intense glint in Makishima's cold visage, and Kougami felt himself being fed faster, and faster still...he became vaguely aware of Makishima's other hand moving back down to his belly, paying it no mind at first as he ate until, without warning, he felt cold pale fingers slip into his bellybutton, and his breath caught.

_No...not there...anywhere but-,_

His own breathing slightly labored, the smirk playing across Makishima's pointed features broadened, and he shoved another few mouthfuls of food rapidly into Kougami's weakened body with one hand while he rubbed the Enforcer's vulnerable navel with increasing speed with the other, watching him hungrily as he did so.

"_OHH_-!"

Kougami's back arched abruptly against his will, his head craning backwards as a euphoric groan tore from his strained throat before he could stop it, muffled against Makishima's palm as more food was forced into his full stomach...everything he ate pushing sensationally up against his starving insides and, he found bitterly, making his bellybutton all the more sensitive to touch as his stomach was forced outward more and more as he ate.

A slight tremor went through Makishima's fingertips even though his visage remained cold and calculating, massaging deeply and eagerly into Kougami's navel as his movements caused the Enforcer's bare torso twisted and writhed under his touch.

"Oh god..._UNGH_!"

Kougami's head rocked back again ecstatically despite himself, inadvertently forcing his stomach up against Makishima's touch...he could feel Makishima's sharp, slightly uneven breathing against his neck and wrenched himself away again, but he couldn't bring himself to resist the sensation of filling his belly up with more food, nor the accompanying and addicting assault on his navel, which only grew more intense as Makishima's passion – if it could be called that, for a man who did not feel true emotion – grew with it.

In a feverish daze that he was too exhausted to fight off fully, Kougami kept eating, continued thrusting his over-stimulated belly up into Makishima's touch as it was filled up from the inside and relentlessly rubbed from the outside...a harsh blow came across his face whenever he faltered, but he took it grimly in stride, knowing somewhere deep down that he was fighting a losing battle.

Time had long since escaped the captured Enforcer when, at long last, he slumped in his bindings, shaggy and matted head dropping to his chest...both he and Makishima were breathing hard, and he could feel sweat clinging to his worn body. His vision swam for a moment, and he managed to look up long enough to figure out why no more forced handfuls of food were being pushed past his lips...the service bot was empty, all of its contents emptied inside of him and weighing his aching stomach down over his belt, too heavy for him to even suck in as Makishima lifted his hand again to give it a few light, satisfied pats.

"U-uunnhh...ungh..."

His belly ached, straining...he stirred, trying to lift his head back up...and a moment later, Makishima unlatched the mechanism that kept him pinned up against the wall.

Kougami dropped like a sack of bricks, falling hard on his elbows and knees against the concrete floor, his head dropping down as he stirred sluggishly.

"N...nrghh..."

It was a moment before he could move, but once he could, he lunged suddenly, forcing his legs to launch him upwards as he swung his bound wrists around toward the side of Makishima's head – but he collapsed halfway up as Makishima drove a knee unforgivingly up into his ribcage, then easily knocked one of his legs out from under him and threw him back down again.

"To be honest, it surprises me that you would even try," Makishima commented, looking down at Kougami's broad back as the Enforcer slowly pushed himself back onto his elbows and knees, then collapsed onto his side again.

Makishima pushed him onto his back with one foot, and Kougami glared up at him, panting open-mouthed in exhaustion...gritting his teeth as he saw the pale grey eyes roam his body where he lay.

"Maybe I shouldn't be surprised you still have fight in you..."

Swiftly, Makishima dropped down toward him, silver-white hair trailing behind him as he did so...he knelt over Kougami unapologetically, his knees flush against the Enforcer's hips as his frail, slender hands moved to push Kougami's bound wrists against the floor over his head, undaunted as the other man bared his teeth furiously and leaning in close to his face.

"You can barely move," Makishima pointed out lowly, pleased. "I could do anything I wanted to you, and you'd not be able to stop me, even now."

Holding Kougami's wrists down with one hand, he reached the other down to the other man's flank, running over it slyly and then giving him a few firm pats, his hand making a dull _thwk thwk thwk _each time in indication of how full he was.

"Nrgh...get...off me..."

Makishima smirked, shifting his hand over dangerously close to Kougami's bruised, reddened navel and giving a satisfied chuckle at the sharp breath the movement elicited from the man underneath him.

"Come here..."

"_Hgh-!_"

Kougami groaned as he was wrenched upwards by his wrists and then slammed roughly up to the wall again, slumping against it wearily. His gaze trailed wearily down over himself and an irritated scoff escaped him.

"Tch...damn, I'm huge..."

From where he was propped half-sitting, half-lying against the wall and floor, the angle pushed his aching stomach out even further, bulging heavily over his uncomfortably tight belt-line. Makishima smiled wryly, leaning over him and rubbing his big round tummy tauntingly.

"Don't tell me you didn't enjoy it," he mused.

"Go to hell."

_Gwwwoorrrrrgghhhh_.

"Ugh..."

Makishima glanced down, then back up into Kougami's wild eyes, smiling again.

"Still hungry?" he surmised, patting his heavy belly.

"Ungh...ugh...what the hell was...in that appetite stimulant you gave me..." Kougami closed one eye as his stomach groaned for more food again even as he ached from the copious amounts already inside of him.

"It's as I said. Base human desires...in the end, they overwrite even our most sophisticated intellectual developments..." Makishima straightened, reaching over and rolling the empty service bot closer to them, reaching around to slide off the panel on the back of it. "No matter how much humans evolve...one need only introduce the right combination of criteria to return us to the instinct-driven animals we once evolved from...hunger...desire...fear...survival...we romanticize such superficial elements of what we believe make us human, like laughter and love. But at the end of the day..."

Kougami's eyes narrowed, his gaze honing in on the back of the bot Makishima was fiddling with...a few moments later, its back panel slid away entirely, and the muscles throughout his body contracted tensely.

"What the hell..."

"Oh, you've seen one of these types before?" Makishima surmised with a smirk, patting the side of the bot. "They're often used in medical facilities, not only to disperse meals to standard patients, but to administer nutrition to those who cannot do so on their own..."

Kougami surveyed him darkly.

"You're gonna kill me," he stated flatly.

"I doubt it."

Makishima patted the reservoir installed in the back of the bot...Hyperoats could be suspended in water rather than being processed into different foods, after all, but the reservoir had been sitting there long enough that its contents had amassed into a thick paste; nonetheless, Makishima unhooked the attachment connected to it with practiced ease, tossing Kougami an idle smile as he set it up.

"A fairly recent development in modern technology," he continued. "Primarily, the trauma of installing feeding tubes to deliver adequate nutrition to otherwise invalid patients often negatively impacts their Psycho Pass, should they be cognizant enough to actually experience the process. A less invasive alternative was developed to protect the precious number upon which this delicate society is built..."

Kougami twisted, managing to force himself up into a sitting position and moving to launch himself forward to attack Makishima again, but his body betrayed him immediately, and Makashima's hand shot out to grip his face, slamming his head back down into the concrete wall behind him so hard that he saw stars for a moment.

Makishima guided the attachment around to where Kougami was slumped, one end of it connected into the oat paste reservoir, the other end outfitted with a small, tube-like mechanical device around a connector. With his other hand, he stroked Kougami's bare navel lightly, sending an involuntary shiver through the Enforcer, and motioned to the device.

"The mechanism installed has transitive properties, you see," he continued, as though there had been no interruption. "The nutritional mix can be administered directly to the patient with no damage, no surgery nor traumatic installments, and is far more effective at delivering adequate servings than the older, outdated methods. I won't bore you with the technical details with how it transfers the contents to the correct place...there's no point, after all – you can assume what it is for, can't you?"

He patted Kougami's bare tummy, and Kougami glared at him weakly from where he was slumped, watching the end of the device hovering near his navel.

"Yeah, you've made your point," he uttered bitterly, ripping his head from beneath Makishima's hand still pressing his head back against the wall behind him. "Tough break, there's no way that thing's gonna work."

Makishima glanced down at him, then stroked his middle idly again...Kougami shivered, then rolled his shoulders irritably...his arms felt like lead, even if they were untied he wasn't sure he could move quickly enough to disable Makishima in his current state.

"Mm...it _is_ going to be a tight fit, isn't it?" Makishima responded thoughtfully, examining Kougami's navel lightly with his fingertips and then sliding his gaze over to the - decidedly larger - device he was holding. "But it _will_ work."

"Makishima," Kougami growled, gearing up to lunge at the man despite himself as soon as he saw an opening, his temper getting the better of him. "You're – HRRNNNNGHH!"

His spine arched violently, his head rocking backwards and his lips drawing back over clenched teeth in agony as Makishima forced the end of the attachment up into his bellybutton without warning...Kougami's bound hands flew to the area, gripping Makishima's wrists in attempt to pull them back, but lacked the strength to disarm the man's steely hold in his current state.

"Shit – _UGH_!"

Twisting stiffly in an attempt to pull away and failing, Kougami curled forward over his bellybutton, both hands still gripping Makishima's as his captor held the device inside of it.

_Sh-shit...ugh...it's too...tight..._

"UUUGH!"

Makishima smirked at the strained noise he had coaxed from Kougami's throat as he forced the oversized device still deeper into his stretched navel, touching the detective's clenched jaw tauntingly with his other hand...Kougami jerked his head away, but his eyes were squeezed shut from the intensity of the discomfort inside him.

"See?" Makishima prompted calmly. "Told you it would fit."

"Ghh..."

"Hold still," Makishima continued, pressing his fingertips slowly against Kougami's stomach in a few different places as though to test how much give was left inside it. "It will take too long if you don't stop thrashing around."

He closed his fist around the end of the attachment and then leaned over back toward the service bot holding the reservoir of liquefied Hyperoats, punching in a few keys on the side of it and then almost casually flipping a switch.

Kougami cracked one eye open as he heard the machinery around the reservoir hum to life, his expression still twisted in discomfort despite the exhaustion betraying his cold blue eyes. With a growing sense of foreboding, he watched grimly in resignation as the far end of the tube began to swell with the contents of the reservoir, traveling slowly down the length of it toward his stomach...Makishima's eyes moved swiftly back over to him to watch his reaction with mild amusement, pressing his one free, cold hand up against Kougami's bare belly in anticipation. Kougami twisted a little, shifting back and forth in attempt to get into a good position to fight back, but couldn't find one. As the liquid was siphoned toward him, he could see it picking up speed in the tube, more and more until he realized that Makishima had clearly modified the machinery to deliver the contents much faster and more forcefully than it was designed to, and he bit back a groan, steeling himself as it raced toward him...his hand was still around Makishima's over the device, gripping it angrily in attempt to pull it away, but before he could do anything, he felt the contents of the nearby reservoir hit the inside of his stomach.

"Hrrrgh-!"

Kougami bent forward, tensing to keep his body from being shaken by the force with which the liquidated Hyperoats rushed into him, the device pumping copious amounts of the expired concoction deep into his groaning belly as he leaned over it again, his grip growing weak around Makishima's wrist...he fell against the man's arm, eyes mostly closed and lips parting slightly even though no sound or breath left him. Makishima smiled a little, his free arm moving to rest across Kougami's back to hold the shuddering Enforcer steady for a moment and twisting the end of the device further into his sick belly.

"N...nh..."

Kougami shifted slightly, and Makishima slammed him back up against the wall and floor against which he was slumped so that his belly stuck up in front of him, then moved to sit over his legs to keep him from kicking away, holding the machine's attachment relentlessly against his tum...through fiery but half-lidded eyes, Kougami could see his own gut quaking from the intensity with which the thick paste rushed into it, but even as it did, his insides groaned in eager anticipation of being fed, and he felt a sudden shiver go through him, gritting his teeth.

_N...no...not...again...sh-shit..._

"Oh..." Kougami's back arched a little once more, but as his head tilted up against the wall again, the discomfort lining his features was overshadowed by a growing look of reluctant exhilaration...his gut was so messed up from Makishima's antics that he could feel it contracting involuntarily as it was filled with the food his body thought he still needed, relishing the sensation of being filled up even as Kougami himself fought against it.

"Sh-shit...what the hell...u-unh..."

Makishima smirked, rubbing Kougami's belly encouragingly to stimulate it, a look of triumph passing over his features as the Enforcer twisted euphorically beneath his touch.

"G...get off me...unh...u-ugh..."

Despite himself, Kougami's eyes drifted shut as food rushed into his belly, his shoulders tensed defiantly but his arms moving of their own accord as he closed one bound hand around Makishima's wrist again, but this time to force the tube mechanism deeper into his stomach, expelling a shaky breath through parted lips as he did so...his other hand came to rest next to Makishima's on the surface of his belly, feeling it gradually expanding into their palms as he was filled up from the inside. It felt so good that he could feel his muscles growing weak beneath Makishima's weight, twisting and turning faintly against the intense sensation of food pushing up against every inch of him, forcing more and more of it through his writhing guts even though he knew in the back of his feverish mind how sick the expired Hyperoats could make him.

"Ohh..."

Makishima's eyes flashed hungrily at the exhilarated utterance, his own pale skin slightly flushed as his breathing increased along with Kougami's...what little give remained in Kougami's insides was long since gone, his growing stomach rock hard and stretched nearly beyond its limits, and Makishima rubbed both sides of it coaxingly in large circles, smirking over the top of it as Kougami twisted again.

"Is it too much?" he taunted, digging his fingertips firmly into the rock-hard mass as it slowly continued to expand...it wasn't clear whether Kougami even registered what he had said, however, his breathing ragged as he let out a deep groan of both pleasure and pain and clutched his stomach.

It went on and on...Kougami was too weak to fight it, and even when he tried, he couldn't, having no choice but to let his belly grow more and more, moaning in agony and exhilaration as it did so.

"No...nh...uhhh...UUNNHH! O-ohhh...ouh..."

Makishima's predatory gaze grew more eager still, leaning down as his hands roamed over the area, pressing his hips further up against the other man as he did so.

"You're about to burst..." he breathed finally over the tightly-stretched skin of Kougami's bulging gut.

Kougami felt it too, his expression contorting as the discomfort forced him into his senses somewhat...Makishima stopped him right before he tried to wrench the device out of himself, forcing him to continue taking more and more food into his belly even as he began to moan sharply and squirm from the strain.

"N...no...auuugh! Nh...ngh...nhhh...no...I can't...nrgh...take it-! _Shit_!" His back arched desperately. "OH GOD, MY BELLY-!"

A look of deep release passed over Makishima's features as Kougami finally yelled out, and at the same time, there was an abrupt _clang_ from the machine nearby before it powered down automatically; the reservoir was empty.

With surprising delicacy for one that had moved his body so forcefully against Kougami's as he had forcefed the weakened detective, Makishima hung the reservoir attachment back up inside the machine and closed the panel on the food service bot before turning his attention back on Kougami, smiling passively as he leaned down.

Kougami was so stuffed that he couldn't move. He managed to lift his head slightly from where he was slumped on the floor, his teeth clenched as he fixed hazy blue eyes defiantly on Makishima's face, but a moment later it dropped back again...he found he couldn't even move his arm to defend himself as Makishima ravaged his bloated, aching, heaving belly, too weak to do anything but lie there and take it. His gut was huge, and he could feel the contents inside him roiling and shifting with every movement...he groaned as Makishima began torturing his bellybutton, but let it happen, knowing he was too full and fat to stop it anyway, then let out a strained grunt as a sharp _thwk _followed a cold hand slapping the tight side of his abdomen.

"Well?" Makishima taunted, leaning forward to smirk down at him. "Do you feel full yet, Shinya Kougami?"

Kougami's stomach gurgled sickly before he could muster a snarky response, no longer rumbling with hunger but churning and bubbling as his stomach ache grew worse and worse, so full that his suffering belly couldn't even digest.

Makishima looked satisfied with the reaction nonetheless, rubbing Kougami's tortured tummy vigorously and jostling the otherwise limp Enforcer in the process. Even so, he was able to elicit a weak groan from the man by giving his belly another firm slap, though it was crammed so completely full that it didn't even move from the impact, rock-hard and visibly clenching so often as Kougami's insides contracted in failed attempts to try and digest or make even the slightest bit of room inside of him.

"N...nrrrghhhh..."

From somewhere in the building, Kougami felt a distant tremor, and he groaned painstakingly as Makishima slapped his tight belly again, returning his irate attention to the pale man leaning over him.

"Are you...n-nrgh...done?" he growled, his hands twisting in their bindings as discomfort wracked his body. "Now that you've stuffed me with enough damn Hyperoats to feed a city..."

"Done?" Makishima looked thoughtful. "I'm never done when it comes to you."

"Urgh! U-uhh..." Kougami groaned as Makishima ran one long finger up the underside of his tummy, using it to lift the heavy mass up for a few moments before letting it drop back down.

A faint noise sounded from a nondescript location down below them, loud enough from wherever it was that the floor seemed to vibrate just slightly. Both Makishima and Kougami glanced toward it for a moment, but a moment later Kougami squeezed his eyes shut as Makishima hurt his bellybutton again, the entire area radiating out from his navel red and bruised and slightly swollen.

"Maybe I will make you split open," Makishima mused dreamily as he leaned over and pressed up against Kougami, rubbing his near-exploding belly...Kougami's eyes widened suddenly as he continued. "There is a certain poetic nature to it, is there not? Filling your belly with food the same way I filled your last partner's veins with-,"

"-You SON OF A BITCH!"

The hunting dog that lived behind Kougami's visage lunged immediately, steel blue gaze erupting with a furious fire as he swung his bound hands around and struck Makashima hard across the side of his head, with such force that it knocked the pale man off of him. Kougami launched himself up onto one elbow to chase after him, to attack, to kill – his stomach let out a deep, massive gurgle, his entire midsection so close to bursting from the change in position that he collapsed again even before Makishima retaliated by slamming him back into the ground and pinning an arm across his throat, his other hand reaching down to punish his belly at the same time.

"Did I hit a sore spot?" he said slyly. "Mm...but if I hadn't done it to begin with, you may never have pursued me so relentlessly...we may never have met the way we have."

Another noise from somewhere in the building, much closer now, and recognizable – the sound of gunfire, and incoherent shouting.

Makishima inclined his head, smirking down at the Enforcer trapped underneath him. He leaned down, letting his breath play across Kougami's neck as he murmured to him.

"Then...until we meet the next time. Shinya," he taunted...then swung a fist up deep into Kougami's fat gut.

"_HNRRGH_!"

Makishima straightened up, stepping over Kougami's incapacitated form on the ground and silently, as though he had never been there to begin with, he was suddenly gone.

Kougami twisted slightly, but then slumped again, his vision of the cracked ceiling fading for a moment before he shook his head rigorously to clear it, drawing one leg up as he panted heavily. He could hear the chaos growing louder and closer, and his grim blue eyes flitted briefly around the room...no good. It was empty, devoid of anything he could think to try and use as a weapon, and he could barely move.

More sounds of gunfire, feet storming down hallways, muffled shouts. Then abruptly, right outside the lone door across the room, a loud _BANG._

Kougami clenched his teeth, his tired eyes hard and ready, his weakened muscles poised as best he could to either dodge or lunge as soon as he was given the opportunity – and not a moment later, the door burst open with such force that it swung all the way back and cracked the wall behind it.

"MWPSB! Put your hands over your head and – huh?! _KOUGAMI_!"

Kougami fell back, his worn but predatory expression fading away along with the last of his strength...under his breath, at long last, he let out a short, relieved sigh.

"...Inspector Tsunemori," he murmured in greeting.

Akane's gaze scanned the room sharply, her Dominator following her eyes around until she had confirmed it clear, at which point she hurried to Kougami, dropping to her knees at his side as her brow furrowed anxiously. Very gently, she set a hand on his bare shoulder.

"Kougami..."

Kougami grit his teeth for a moment to bite back another groan, turning his head up toward her.

"Did you get him?" he managed, though his tone was a little strained. "Makishima...did you catch him?"

"Makishima?" Akane's eyes were still roaming his broken body, her hand moving up to run through his wild hair without thinking. "No...I don't think anyone has come across him yet..."

Kougami turned his head back and closed his eyes, suppressing another groan of discomfort.

"Figures..." His wrists twisted in irritation, raw against the bindings by now. "He was right under my nose, and I still..."

"Don't worry about that now," Akane advised, pulling Kougami's big hands closer to her so she could begin getting him out of the restraints. "Stop pulling on it, you're hurting yourself..."

Kougami grunted in relief as nimble fingers began to work the bindings away from his bruised wrists, his hands tingling a little as the blood flow raced back into them...he slid his half-lidded gaze back over to Akane.

"What're you doing, busting in this room without any Enforcers?" he murmured, though his tone was lighter. "Not very becoming of an Inspector...Gino wouldn't stand for it..."

Akane gave a slight chuckle.

"They're busy," she commented, as another round of gunfire sounded from somewhere in the building, followed by a rather tell-tale sound of something squelching and then splattering heavily onto a surface...someone had been shot by a Dominator.

"Besides..." Akane's eyes were trained on her work as she continued to carefully work loose the bindings around Kougami's hands. "...My Enforcer was already in here."

She looked over at him and smiled...Kougami let out a weak chuckle, then groaned in relief as at last the restraints fell away from his hands, rubbing his wrists for a moment.

"Thanks," he said. "Now come on, let's get out of here – hrrnghh..."

"Detective Kougami, stand down," Akane demanded, her young voice growing uncharacteristically stern, though her hands betrayed her by flying anxiously to Kougami as he pushed himself slowly up onto his elbows and then faltered. "Wait for the medics..."

Kougami collapsed onto his back again a second later, groaning through his clenched teeth in discomfort and then letting out a sigh of resignation.

"Bossin' me around..."

There was a garbled scream from close by the room and another unseemly splattering noise, followed by the sound of rapid footsteps...a moment later, Kagari skidded to a halt in the entryway, followed closely by Masaoka.

"Inspector Tsunemori!"

Both Akane and Kougami looked toward them as they hurried in, their Dominators still drawn; Kagari had a cut above his eyebrow and Masaoka's breathing was labored.

"Shit..." Masaoka panted, his eyes traveling from Kougami slumped on the floor to Akane kneeling at his side, one hand on his chest to keep him from trying to get up again and the other resting gently atop his swollen, violated belly. "Ko, you're...damn..."

"Looks like that was the last of 'em," Kagari said sharply, glancing up and down it one last time before opening comms on his wrist terminal. "Giving the all clear..."

"Kougami..." Akane said reproachfully as he pushed himself stubbornly onto his elbows again, one eye closing in discomfort as he did so.

"What the hell happened to you, Ko?" Masaoka demanded gravely as Kagari peered around at him as well from where he was standing guard at the door.

"Ngh...had a party," Kougami retorted roughly, gritting his teeth for a moment to keep from collapsing again. "Are we gonna get outta here any time soon, or are you all just gonna stand there and stare at my gut?"

Akane's hand came to rest lightly on Kougami's back as he managed to slowly sit up, resting one elbow on his knee and cursing under his breath...nonetheless, she smiled a little, meeting his gaze with slightly reddened cheeks.

"Yeah," she said lightly. "Let's get out of here."

The inside of the police cruiser was sterile and silent save for the faint hum of the electric engine and the dull blast of dry, heated air to combat the frigid temperatures and snow that had amassed outside, which threatened to leak in through the window Kougami had cracked open just enough so that he could promptly light a cigarette the moment he was given the chance.

He was half-slumped in the passenger seat of the two-person car, his gaze weary and tired as he gazed out the window at the surroundings flying by, expression half-obscured by the high collar of his usual dark green fleece civilian coat. The hand that wasn't balancing his cigarette was limp in his lap, his two broken fingers taped together and bound with gauze and a steel support, both his wrists wrapped up lightly with a layer of antibiotics and hyper-healing salve beneath the material.

Akane herself sat across from him, her eyes trained out the front of the car as she drove with one hand, the other resting absently against the near-horizontal curve of the top of Kougami's belly.

"I wish you had just gone with the medics," she murmured idly to him, still watching the road.

Kougami's gaze slid sideways over to her, and he took another drag from his cigarette.

"Don't want me along?" he mused.

"That's not it..." She glanced over at him worriedly, her tone slightly exasperated...Kougami looked stubbornly back out the window.

"I told you, I'm fine," he murmured. "Gonna take a lot more than stomach ache to get me in the back of a damn ambulance..."

"You're going to the medical bay as soon as we get back...you know that, right?"

Kougami made a vague noise of discontent and took another drag of his cigarette.

_Guuuuurggggle_.

Akane glanced over again worriedly as she felt Kougami's stomach rumble beneath her palm, rubbing it back and forth gently for a moment without thinking.

"Are...you okay?" she prompted softly.

"Ngh..." Kougami let his head drop back against the seat for a moment. "Yeah. Just need to take a load off. Where the hell are we, anyway?"

"A ways out of the city, for sure," Akane said, turning her eyes back to the road. "That's what made it so hard to find you. The hideout was halfway up this mountain we're on...seems like it was just a halfway house for some kind of local yakuza branch. Figures Makishima would be using other people and facilities to get what he wants..."

Kougami closed his eyes, relaxing tiredly into the warm hand resting on his sore belly.

"No trace of him, huh..."

"Not that we found." Akane bit her lip, returning both her hands to the steering wheel and slowing the car a little. "These mountain roads weren't made for a blizzard..."

"Want me to take over?"

"No, you need to rest-,"

"INSPECTOR!"

A wild screeching of tires, and a nondescript car on the other side of the road veered suddenly and intentionally toward them...Akane's small hands locked on the wheel, her eyes flashing as she slammed her foot on the brakes. The police car skidded, spinning sideways across the slick asphalt, and the other car rammed into it at full force...the wheels left the road, and all at once, everything began to tilt.

As though in slow motion, Kougami raked his eyes around toward Akane...he could feel the rotation of the car as it began to rotate over the guard rail, and moved without thinking; he launched himself toward her, his body knocking into her much smaller one and wrapping around it as he reached blindly for the door on her side. His fingers grasped the handle, wrenching it back just as both of their bodies impacted with it, knocking the door open in mid air and flinging both of them out of the vehicle as both the car and the two detectives disappeared over the side of the snowy mountain.


End file.
